ACP and IDSA Release Guidelines on RSV Vaccination

The American College of Physicians (ACP) has recommended adults 75 years of age and older receive “one dose of RSV vaccine,” according to guidelines published in Annals of Internal Medicine. CIDRAP has the news.

According to CDC data, RSV was “associated with 190,000 to 350,000 hospitalizations from July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025, as well as 10,000 to 23,000 deaths.” Adults are more likely to develop severe RSV infection if they “are 75 years or older or living in a long-term care facility.”

The ACP currently recommends a “single RSV shot, as opposed to the annual vaccination recommended for influenza and COVID-19 vaccines. Scientists don’t yet know how the protection from a single dose will last, although protection appears to wane over time.”

These recommendations represent the ongoing fracturing of trust in federal health agencies, as medical societies are opting to “publish their own rapid reviews of the science for vaccines protecting against respiratory disease.” The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) published their own guidelines as well, focusing on “RSV vaccines for people with weakened immune systems, including people who have diseases that dampen their immune response or those who take immune-suppressing medications, including drugs given to people who’ve received organ transplants or who are being treated for cancer.”