CDC Urges Nursing Home VaccinationsThe Hill | By Nathaniel Weixel and Joseph Choi Its’ the height of respiratory virus season, but some of the country’s most vulnerable people remain at risk. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), most nursing home residents haven’t received an updated COVID-19 vaccine or the new respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine. COVID-19, influenza and RSV activity are still below levels seen last year at this time, according to the CDC. But only 35 percent of nursing home residents have gotten the updated COVID-19 vaccine, and just 10 percent had received an RSV shot. Both shots are fully covered by Medicaid, Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage, and most private insurance plans. Nursing homes are encouraged to collaborate with state, local and federal public health and long-term care pharmacy partners to address barriers contributing to low vaccination coverage, CDC said. For the COVID-19 vaccine, lower uptake might be related to challenges to vaccine access, as well as cost and payment barriers associated with the vaccine’s commercialization, the agency said. Older people are also receiving messaging for multiple seasonal vaccines (in many cases three or four), and it can be overwhelming. The relative newness of the RSV shots may also confuse providers, who then give inaccurate information to their patients. |