Hot Topics in IPC for May 29, 2025: Policy Changes in COVID-19 Vaccines, Measles Updates, and More

Saskia v. Popescu presents Hot Topics in Infection Prevention

Changes in COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations

On Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in a joint social media video post, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, US Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary, and National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya shared the decision to remove the recommendations for COVID-19 vaccinations for pregnant women and from the CDC’s recommendations on vaccine schedules.

This decision has drawn rapid concerns from public health and medical professionals and organizations, citing the increased risk for complications that pregnant people have with COVID-19 infections and the importance of vaccination for reducing risk. Additionally, vaccine recommendations do not typically come through such mechanisms, but rather via the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which involves expert consultations and voting on a schedule to be shared with the CDC Director.

As of today, this advisory group has not voted on these changes. Lastly, the change in recommendations may impact insurance coverage for the vaccine. Reuters reported that “A spokesperson for CVS Health said the company is determining whether changes in health insurance coverage are required as the federal government reassesses COVID-19 vaccine eligibility, while a Blue Cross Blue Shield Association spokesperson said preventative health benefits, including [COVID-19] vaccines, are essential in keeping patients healthy.”

Texas Measles Outbreak: Signs of Slowing?

Good news and bad news. The good news is that the measles outbreak associated with West Texas appears to be slowing and has had 1 new case reported since May 23rd. Since January, the outbreak has involved 720 cases of measles in Texas. Bad news? Nine new cases were reported since Friday, but they weren’t associated with the outbreak. There was also a recent exposure notice for Collin County between May 19 and 22, which you can find information on here. There was also a recent exposure during a concert on May 15, 2025, in New Jersey. Unfortunately, new single cases are being reported nationally; Iowa has also recently reported its first case since 2019, as well as Nebraska and New Mexico.

H5N1 Updates and A Fourth Fatality in Cambodia

In terms of the US H5N1 outbreak, we’re still holding at 70 cases in humans (64 identified through targeted H5 surveillance and 6 through national flu surveillance), and the latest report to the CDC (May 22, 2025) has detection in 13,037 wild birds across 51 jurisdictions. In terms of dairy herds (updated May 27, 2025), there are now 1,072 total dairy herds affected across 17 states since the beginning of the outbreak. Internationally (and very concerningly), Cambodia has just reported its fourth human H5N1 fatality this year. “An investigation revealed reports of illnesses and deaths in chickens and ducks near the boy's home about a week before his symptoms began.”

Articles Worth Reading:

• Screwworms are heading north! In a time where we’re focusing a great deal on respiratory pathogens, this was an insightful article on a neglected parasite that we might want to keep on our radar…in addition to the One Health aspects.
• Bedbugs are an urban pest and an infection preventionist’s utter annoyance.
• Using AI to tackle central line-associated bloodstream infections in an intensive Care Unit (ICU). A retrospective analysis of adult ICU patients with central lines identified key predictors through Recursive Feature Elimination. Demographic and biochemical parameters were collected, and 4 models were trained and validated.

The Editor’s Additional Article Suggestions:

• RFK Jr threatens to bar government scientists from publishing in leading medical journals: “Speaking on the “Ultimate Human” podcast, Kennedy said the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of the American Medical Association, and The Lancet, 3 of the most influential medical journals in the world, were “corrupt” and publish studies funded and approved by pharmaceutical companies.”
• The US and Argentina are launching a new ‘alternative’ to the World Health Organization (WHO). Leaders from both countries say that “The WHO’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic revealed serious structural and operational shortcomings.”
• FDA approves MenQuadfi meningococcal vaccine for children 6 weeks or older. The approved indication now includes children as young as 6 weeks of age to protect against invasive meningococcal disease caused by serogroups A, C, W, and Y.
• Some Regions of the World are Seeing Large Increases in COVID-19 Incidence Rates.
  The WHO reports that the previously predominant LP81 variant has been declining, while the NB181 strain, a variant under monitoring, is increasing.