The Alaska Department of Health has released its fall vaccine update, aligning with the latest federal guidance as the state prepares for flu, RSV, and Covid-19 season, but adding that some medical professional groups have developed alternate guidance.
Flu Vaccine
Health officials recommend that everyone six months and older receive the 2025–2026 trivalent influenza vaccine, which is now available statewide. This year’s formulation is a single-dose shot designed to protect against the most common strains expected to circulate. The Department has published new epidemiology bulletins outlining vaccine availability and clinical guidance for providers.
COVID-19 Vaccine
On Aug. 27, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved new Covid vaccines for the 2025–2026 season from Moderna, Pfizer, and Sanofi/Novavax. At the same time, the FDA revoked the Emergency Use Authorization for prior versions of Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech, and Novavax vaccines. These older formulations should no longer be administered.
For children ages six months to 11 years, the revoked EUA vaccines are no longer authorized. For people 12 and older, state health officials emphasize that patients should receive the newly licensed 2025–2026 vaccines rather than last season’s products.
The Alaska Department of Health is directing providers to immediately remove all 2024–2025 Covid vaccines from storage, delete them from inventory systems, and return unused doses to the CDC’s centralized distributor.
RSV Protection
Orders for nirsevimab, a preventive antibody for respiratory syncytial virus in infants, continue to be filled as Alaska prepares for the peak RSV season later this fall.
Next Steps
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will meet September 18–19 to finalize recommendations for Covid vaccines. National groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, have already released their alternate preliminary recommendations, but it’s unclear if the Alaska Department of Health will go along with them. Alaska’s Immunization Program will issue further guidance once ACIP’s decisions are published.
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