Hello everyone! It’s November and fall is officially here. That means cold and flu season is also
upon us. This year, you may have heard of new recommendations on vaccines and injections to
combat some of these viruses. Following is a quick guide to what is currently available
to best protect you and your family.
1) Flu vaccine: flu shots are still the BEST way to decrease your and your family’s chance of
getting and having complications from influenza. Please call our office to schedule 2023-
2024 season flu vaccine today. This is our strong recommendation and is covered by all
insurance plans.
2) COVID vaccine: We are currently offering COVID vaccine in our office. Regardless of your
previous vaccine status, per CDC recommendations, we encourage everyone over the age
of 6 months to receive the updated 2023-2024 Covid vaccine. We are diligently working with
all our contracted insurance plans to confirm that this will be a covered benefit. Please
call our office to confirm coverage for your specific insurance plan. As of now, COVID
vaccine has FDA approval for 6 months to 11 years under EUA (Emergency Use
AuthorizaDon) status and full FDA approval for those 12 years and up.
3) Beyfortus (Nirsevimab): Beyfortus is a long-acting (~5 months) monoclonal antibody
approved by the FDA and recommended by the CDC and AAP as it was shown to reduce
the risk of medically attended cases (office visits, urgent care visits, ER visits, and
hospitalizations) from the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) by 75% in clinical trials. We are
VERY excited about this injection. Because RSV season starts in late October/early
November and lasts through March, this injection would be most helpful given at the
start or during the RSV season. This injection is recommended for babies less than 8
months of age entering their first RSV season and 8-19 months old with specific medical
conditions entering their second RSV season. We are actively seeking confirmation from
insurance plans for coverage. Due to VERY limited supplies, please call our office for
availability as well as updates on your insurance coverage for this injection. We also
encourage you to call your insurance plan to seek confirmation of coverage.
4) Synagis (Palivizumab): Synagis is another monoclonal antibody injection that has been
available since 2004 to prevent significant respiratory illness from RSV. However, Synagis
is only available for very high-risk infants (namely those born at least 32 weeks of
gestation or less entering the first RSV season) and is given monthly for 5 months during RSV
season. Those infants who meet the criteria for Synagis will be offered Synagis injection
by our office after confirming insurance coverage.
5) Abrysvo: This is a new FDA-approved vaccine against RSV recommended for pregnant
moms. This vaccine is recommended for moms at 32-36 weeks of pregnancy from
September to January to help babies being born during RSV season. Babies born to
moms who already received Abrysvo are believed to be protected against RSV and
currently do not need Beyfortus injection. Please talk to your OB/GYN for additional
information regarding this vaccine.
If you have additional questions, please feel free to reach out to us to better assist you.
Dr Lee, Dr Yung and Dr Austin
