| Coureur beat me to it!
There is a new meniningococcal vaccine available, that offers longer immunity and seems to prevent transmission of meningococcal infection.
The CDC is recommending that 11 and 12 year olds, children entering high school, and college freshmen living in dormitories receive the vaccine. These recommendations will hold for a few years and the high school children will be dropped. The plan/hope is that all children will begin to be immunized at age 11/12. These recommendations led to an immediate shortage of vaccine (Great!), which will last about 3 years. The advisory panel that makes the scientific decisions for the CDC did not want to wait until the company could provide vaccine for everyone because of the ability of the vaccine to prevent transmission from person to person (in other words, if only some kids in the dorm or the high school classroom are immunized, that increases the "herd immunity", resistance of the entire population).
Coureur may know this - will the old vaccine also be available? I don't disagree with Coureur's plan to get the new if he can, but in the setting of an acute shortage, the old vaccine will definitely be better than no vaccine. |