People 50 and older should get pneumococcal vaccine, US science panel recommends
The IndependentFor free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. If the recommendation is accepted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the minimum recommended age for older adults to get the shot would be lowered from 65, where it currently stands. The CDC currently recommends shots for children younger than 5 and adults 65 or older, as long as they have never been vaccinated against pneumococcal disease. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration this year approved the newest — Merck’s Capvaxive, which can cost around $300 a dose and protects against 21 types, including eight not included in other pneumococcal vaccines. “Pneumococcal has been a very confusing recommendation for many, many years and it’s hard to have a new recommendation every two or three years,” said Dr. Jamie Loehr, chair of the committee’s pneumococcal working group.