Immunizations

Vaccines are recommended throughout your life. Even if you were fully vaccinated as a child, you may be at risk for other diseases due to your age, job, lifestyle, travel, or health condition. In addition, the protection from some vaccines can wear off over time. All adults need vaccinations to protect against serious diseases that could result in severe illness requiring medical treatment or even hospitalization, missed work, and not being able to care for family.

Every year, thousands of adults in the U.S. suffer serious health problems, are hospitalized, and even die from diseases that could be prevented by vaccines. Many of these diseases are common in the U.S. For example, in 2015, there were about 27,000 cases of invasive pneumococcal disease and 3,300 deaths among adults ages 18 and older. In addition, about 1 million cases of shingles and millions of cases of influenza occur each year in the U.S.
Older adults and adults with chronic health conditions such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), heart disease and diabetes are at higher risk of suffering complications from certain vaccine-preventable diseases like flu and pneumonia

The vaccines a person needs are based on their age, medical conditions, occupation, vaccines they have received in the past, and other factors. Taking the CDC Adult Vaccine Quiz  is one way to find out which vaccines you might need.

All persons 6 months of age and older are recommended to get the flu vaccine every year, with rare exception. Flu vaccination is especially important for those who are at high risk of serious flu-related complications, including adults 65 years and older, pregnant women and people with certain chronic conditions like asthma, diabetes, or heart disease. Also vaccination of caregivers of high risk persons is especially important to protect those who are at high risk. Examples of caregivers include parents of children younger than 6 months (because they are too young to be vaccinated), health care workers, or anyone who works in a long-term care facility.

Getting vaccinated against the flu while pregnant during any trimester decreases the risk of flu and flu-related illnesses for the mother and developing baby throughout the pregnancy and can protect the baby for several months after birth. This protection is crucial since children younger than 6 months old are too young to receive their own flu vaccine and are at high risk of severe illness from flu.

All adults should get a one-time dose of Tdap vaccine to protect against tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (whooping cough) if they did not receive this vaccine as a preteen or teen. Whooping cough has been on the rise in recent years, and can be very serious, and even deadly for babies. All adults should receive a Td booster every 10 years to protect against tetanus and diphtheria. These two diseases are uncommon now because of vaccines, but they can be very serious.

Women are recommended to get a Tdap vaccine during the third trimester of every pregnancy to help protect themselves and their newborn babies against whooping cough. They should get Tdap during pregnancy even if they have had a prior Tdap shot.

Other vaccines you need as an adult are determined by factors such as age, lifestyle, job, health condition, and vaccines you’ve received in the past. Vaccines that may be recommended for you are vaccines that protect against shingles, pneumococcal disease, human papillomavirus (which can cause certain cancers), meningococcal disease, hepatitis A and B, chickenpox, and measles, mumps and rubella (MMR).

If you’re traveling abroad, you may need additional vaccines. Check the CDC Travel Website for more information on what you should do to prepare for travel based on where you are traveling.

Take CDC’s Vaccine Quiz  and discuss the results with your health care professional to make sure you are up to date on the vaccines recommended for you.

Some vaccines recommended for adults are very similar to childhood vaccines. For example, Tdap is a vaccine that is used for people over the age of 6 to provide protection against tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis. A vaccine called DTaP is given to children 6 and younger to provide protection against these same diseases.

Other vaccines protect against diseases that are more common in adults than in children. For instance, the shingles vaccine protects against shingles, a disease more common in adults; this vaccine is not recommended for children.
Adults should make sure to discuss vaccines with their doctor or other health care professionals. You also can get information on which vaccines you might need by taking a brief quiz at www.cdc.gov/vaccines/adults.

Many of the vaccines recommended for adults have been around for years.

We’re hearing more about the MMR vaccine because of measles outbreaks in the United States in previous years. Every year, unvaccinated travelers get measles while abroad and bring the disease into the United States. They can spread the disease to other people who are not protected against measles, which sometimes leads to outbreaks. This can occur in communities with unvaccinated people, including unvaccinated adults. For those travelling internationally, CDC recommends that all U.S. residents older than 6 months receive MMR vaccine, if needed, prior to departure.

One reason we’re hearing more about Tdap is the recent outbreaks of whooping cough over the past few years. In 2016, more than 15,000 cases were provisionally reported in the United States. We have learned that protection from the whooping cough vaccine given to children doesn’t last into adulthood.

Therefore, all adults are recommended to get one dose of Tdap if they did not receive it as a preteen or teen. CDC also recommends that women get Tdap during the third trimester of EACH pregnancy to give their babies short-term protection from whooping cough when the babies are too young to be immunized.

Getting vaccinated during pregnancy is important as this can provide protection to children younger than 3 months old—those most likely to have severe illness from whooping cough. Whooping cough is most severe for babies; about half of babies younger than 1 year old who get the disease need treatment in the hospital. Up to 20 babies die each year because of whooping cough.

Ask your doctor or other health care professional which vaccines are right for you based on your age, job, lifestyle, health conditions and vaccines you received as a child. You also can visit www.cdc.gov/vaccines/adults for more information and find a link to an adult vaccine quiz to see which vaccines are recommended for you.

Side effects from vaccines are usually mild and temporary, such as soreness where the shot was given or a slight fever that goes away within a few days. Some people may have allergic reactions to certain vaccines, but serious and long-term effects are rare. However, the benefits of vaccination greatly outweigh the risks.

Anyone who gets a vaccine should be fully informed about both the benefits and the risks of vaccination. Any questions or concerns should be discussed with a health care professional.

Yes. The longstanding vaccine safety system in the U.S. ensures that vaccines are very safe.

Safety monitoring begins with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which ensures the safety and effectiveness of vaccines for the United States. Before the FDA approves a vaccine for use by the public, the results of studies on safety and effectiveness of the vaccine are evaluated by highly trained FDA scientists and doctors. The FDA also inspects the sites where vaccines are manufactured to make sure they follow strict manufacturing guidelines.

The FDA and CDC continue to monitor vaccines after licensing to ensure continued safety of the vaccines in the U.S.

Vaccines contain ingredients called antigens (the part of the vaccine that helps your body build up protection against viruses), which cause the body to develop immunity.

Vaccines can also contain very small amounts of other ingredients, which can vary by vaccine. These ingredients play necessary roles either in making the vaccine or in ensuring that the vaccine is safe and effective, such as preventing vaccine contamination.

For more information: www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-gen/additives.htm

For people with certain chronic health conditions like diabetes, asthma, or heart disease, it is even more important to be up to date on vaccines because they are at increased risk for complications from certain vaccine-preventable diseases, such as flu and pneumonia. For instance, diabetes can make the immune system less able to fight infections. Additionally, flu illness can make it harder for someone with diabetes to control their blood sugars. These complications put people with diabetes at higher risk of flu-related complications, including illness that can result in hospitalization. That’s why it’s especially important for people with diabetes and certain other high-risk factors to get the flu vaccine every year.

It is safe for people who are taking prescription medications to get vaccines. There are, however, other factors that may make it unsafe for some people to get certain vaccines, such as allergy to a vaccine or a certain vaccine ingredient. And live vaccines should not be given to people with weakened immune systems or to pregnant women. Talk to your health care professional to determine which vaccines are recommended for you.

The amount of protection from vaccination varies by vaccine and each person’s age and health. Vaccines generally work better when given to younger, healthier people, but immunization is the best defense against many of serious, and sometimes deadly, diseases. If you’ve been vaccinated and become ill with the disease after having developed immunity from the vaccine, your illness may be less severe than if you had not been vaccinated.

All Health Insurance Marketplace plans and most other private insurance plans must cover the following list of vaccines without charging a copayment or coinsurance when provided by an in-network provider:

• Hepatitis A
• Hepatitis B
• Shingles
• Human Papillomavirus
• Influenza
• MMR (Measles, Mumps, Rubella)
• Meningococcal
• Pneumococcal
• Td and Tdap (Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis)
• Chickenpox

Check with your health insurance provider for details.

Medicare Part B will pay for the following vaccines:

• Influenza (flu)
• Pneumococcal
• Hepatitis B for persons at increased risk of hepatitis
• Vaccines directly related to the treatment of an injury or direct exposure to a disease or condition, such as rabies and tetanus
Medicare Part D or Medicare Advantage Plan Part C that offers Medicare prescription drug coverage may also have partial or full coverage for other vaccines, including:
• Shingles
• MMR
• Td and Tdap
• Hepatitis A
Most state Medicaid agencies cover at least some adult immunizations but may not offer all vaccines. Check with your state Medicaid agency for more information.

Family Medicine Associates can handle your vaccination needs! Just give us a call: 413-562-5173 and let us know what you need. We’re happy to provide you with vaccination options. If for some reason you’re not able to schedule a visit with us (i.e., you’re travelling, etc.) then generally, vaccines may be available at private doctor offices, pharmacies, workplaces, community health clinics, health departments, or other community locations such as schools and religious centers. There is an online tool – HealthMap Vaccine Finder –  to help you find immunization providers near you.

You also can contact your state or local health department to learn more about where to get vaccines in your community. If your health care professional does not stock all the vaccines recommended for you, ask for a referral.

Many adults don’t realize they need vaccines to protect against diseases like whooping cough, hepatitis A and B, or pneumococcal disease. Even for those who do realize they need additional vaccines, there are challenges to staying up to date. As adults, we tend to worry about day-to-day things and are busy caring for our families, so we don’t often think about preventive measures that can help keep us healthy. That’s why it’s so critical for clinicians to strongly recommend the vaccines that patients need. It’s also important for clinicians to refer patients to providers in the area for vaccines they don’t stock.

Cost may be an issue for some adults. However, most private health insurance covers routinely recommended vaccines. Those eligible for Medicare and Medicaid also have coverage for certain vaccines.

There are many things adults do to stay healthy. We know we need to eat the right foods and exercise. We need to get our recommended cancer screenings. Another important thing we need to do is get our recommended vaccines.

Adults who aren’t up to date on their vaccines are at greater risk of getting and spreading certain vaccine-preventable diseases. It is especially important for older adults and those with chronic health conditions such as heart disease, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and diabetes to get vaccinated because they are at increased risk for complications from diseases. CDC encourages all adults to talk to their health care professional about which vaccines are right for them – and get vaccinated.

While whooping cough may not be as serious for adults as it is for babies, it is important that adults get vaccinated. It is especially important for adults who will have close contact with babies younger than 1 year old. Whooping cough is most serious for babies; about half of babies younger than 1 year old who get the disease need treatment in the hospital. Up to 20 babies die from whooping cough each year in the United States. Adults can also get complications from whooping cough, including passing out or fracturing a rib during violent coughing fits.

Whooping cough is not a disease of the past. While we no longer see the number of cases we did before whooping cough vaccines were available, it is a growing health concern. More than 15,000 cases of whooping cough were provisionally reported to the CDC in 2016.

There are several reasons that help explain why we’re seeing more reported cases of whooping cough lately. Studies have shown that the whooping cough vaccines we use now do not provide long-lasting protection. This is known as waning immunity. We are also more aware of whooping cough, have better tests to diagnose it, and have better systems for reporting

Whooping cough can be serious for anyone, but it is life-threatening in newborns and young babies. By getting vaccinated during pregnancy, women pass protection (antibodies) to their baby before birth. This allows babies to have some protection when they are too young to get their own whooping cough vaccine. About half of babies younger than 1 year old who get the disease need treatment in the hospital. Up to 20 babies die each year from whooping cough.
The amount of whooping cough antibodies a person has decreases over time. Women need a whooping cough vaccine during each pregnancy so each baby gets the greatest number of protective antibodies and best protection possible against this disease.

Family Medicine Associates patients who are pregnant will likely receive their Tdap from their OB-GYN. Family Medicine Associates will gladly provide Tdap for family members.

Yes. CDC recommends a yearly flu vaccine for just about everyone 6 months and older, even when the viruses the vaccine protects against have not changed from the previous season. The reason for this is that a person’s immune protection from vaccination declines over time, so an annual vaccination is needed to get the “optimal” or best protection against the flu. Adults should get a flu vaccine by the end of October if possible.

FLUCELVAX QUADRIVALENT. It is a flu vaccine for people aged
4 years and older that is made from inactivated (dead) flu viruses.
It helps protect against the same 4 strains as traditional egg-based quadrivalent flu vaccines and is antibiotic, latex, and preservative free.

Who should not get FLUCELVAX QUADRIVALENT?

You should not get FLUCELVAX QUADRIVALENT if you have had a severe allergic reaction to any of the ingredients in the vaccine.

Who may not be able to get FLUCELVAX QUADRIVALENT?
Tell your healthcare provider if you:

• have ever had Guillain-Barré Syndrome (severe muscle weakness) after getting a flu shot
• have ever fainted after receiving an injection

What if I have a weakened immune system?

Tell your healthcare provider if you have problems with your immune system, as your immune response to the vaccine may be less.

What are the most common side effects of FLUCELVAX QUADRIVALENT?

• pain or redness where you got the shot
• headache
• tiredness
• muscle aches
• feeling unwell (malaise)

These are not all of the possible side effects of FLUCELVAX QUADRIVALENT. You can ask your healthcare provider for a complete list of possible side effects.
Ask your healthcare provider for advice about any side effects that concern you.

The Nasal Spray Flu Vaccine/FluMist (Live Attenuated Influenza Vaccine, or LAIV) is not offered by Family Medicine Associates.

Just as it did for the 2016-2017 influenza season, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) has again decided to recommend against use of live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV; FluMist) for the 2017-2018 flu season because of the vaccine’s reduced efficacy.

http://www.aafp.org/news/health-of-the-public/20170630acipjunemtg.html
https://blog.nemours.org/2016/07/no-flumist/
https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2016/s0622-laiv-flu.html

No. We’ll write a prescription for ZOSTAVAX if your provider determines that you meet criteria for this vaccine (i.e., you have had chickenpox AND you are age 50 or older). The actual shot will be given at the pharmacy by qualified staff.

• Talk with your doctor or other health care professional about which vaccines are right for you.
• Visit CDC’s website on Adult Vaccination.
• Take the CDC Adult Vaccine Quiz to find out which vaccines are recommended for you.
• Use the Healthmap Vaccine Finder to find vaccines.
• For more information on adult vaccines – Preventive Health Services – and the Affordable Care Act

All adults should get:
* Annual flu vaccine to protect against seasonal flu.
* Td/Tdap to protect against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis.

Some additional vaccines you may need (depending on your age, health conditions and other factors) include:
* Hepatitis A
* Hepatitis B
* Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
* Meningococcal
* Pneumococcal
* Shingles
* Tdap

Traveling overseas? There may be additional vaccines you need depending on the location. Find out at www.cdc.gov/travel