The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) issued the following statement in response to the recent Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announcement of the amendment to the declaration under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act that would authorize pharmacists to order and administer vaccines to children between the ages of 3-18.
“While we acknowledge the importance of getting patients caught up on vaccines, the AAFP has concerns that allowing vaccinations to be given outside of the patient’s usual primary care setting could disrupt the doctor-patient relationship that is so critical, especially during a health pandemic. Knowing the full medical history of their patients allows family physicians to touch base on a host of critical medical issues during vaccine visits. Any measure – however temporary – that disrupts the doctor-patient relationship creates further confusion in already challenging times.” — Gary LeRoy, MD, president, AAFP.
The new emergency rule issued by HHS allows state-licensed pharmacists to give federally scheduled vaccines to children ages 3 through 18, including the flu vaccine. The measure is supposed to encourage widespread immunization as schools open during the pandemic and to resolve a patchwork of state laws that govern shots and age limits.
Bigger concern needs to be the insurance companies starting to balk at paying for second doses in a series. We are having insurance question second doses (pneumococcal and shingrix). So, if we want the series completed, we either send them to the pharmacy or eat the cost. In that situation, I will go for better medicine. The insurance companies have not done any studies, but they are not shy about dictating care.