Publications:

News about Vaccine Information Statements

IMPORTANT: By Federal law, all vaccine providers must give patients, or their parents or legal representatives, the appropriate Vaccine Information Statement (VIS) whenever a vaccination is given.

All VISs

• All VISs are now available in RTF format. Some providers have requested that VISs be made available in a text-based format for integration into electronic systems. VISs for all vaccines have been converted into rtf (rich text format) files, and are accessible from the main VIS webpage along with the traditional pdf files. (The only exception is Adenovirus, which is used only by the military.)
  Some electronic systems favor other text-based formats, such as xml or html. RTF files can be converted to these formats using Microsoft Word.
  (7/23/12)
• More barcodes. Barcodes have been added to 7 more VISs (in addition MMR, the first VIS to feature a barcode). These are hepatitis A, hepatitis B, HPV (Gardasil), polio, Japanese encephalitis, meningococcal, and Td/Tdap. Other than the addition of barcodes, these VISs are identical to the ones they replace. The edition dates have not changed, and existing (non-barcode) versions may still be used. For more information, see our VIS Barcode webpage. (5/21/12)
• Barcodes are here! The first VIS featuring a 2D barcode (the updated MMR VIS) is now available. Barcodes will be added to existing and updated VISs begining today. They will be located on the back of the VIS near the edition date, in a box labeled "Office Use Only." These barcodes will allow providers with the necessary hardware and software to scan the VIS name and edition date into patients' electronic medical records. Use of these barcodes is not required; it is simply an alternative to entering the information manually. For more information, see our VIS Barcode webpage. (4/24/12)

Influenza

• 2012-2013 Influenza VISs are available. Both the live, intranasal and inactivated influenza VISs (including the large type version of the inactivated influenza VIS) are available for downloading as both pdf and rtf files. They are dated 7/2/2012. While they have been updated into the newer VIS format, the content is identical to last year's flu VISs. [Please note that there are minor changes in the ACIP influenza recommendations this season; however, these do not affect the VISs.] (7/3/12)
• Febrile seizures update. CDC has posted a more detailed explanation of the potential risk of febrile seizures when TIV and PCV13 are administered simultaneously at http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/Concerns/FebrileSeizures.html. (9/9/11)
• TIV & PCV13 and febrile seizures. The 2011-12 inactivated influenza vaccine VIS contains a note about increased risk of febrile seizures when TIV and PCV13 are given simultaneously. Until a more detailed explanation is published on CDC's website, a brief note accessible from the VIS homepage (with the influenza vaccine download) or from here gives some information that providers can share with their patients about this issue. (8/26/11)

Tdap/Td

• Another uppdated Td/Tdap VIS coming. On February 22, 2012 ACIP voted to make a dose of Tdap routine for all adults 65 years of age and older. This will require an VIS update to reflect the change. Since the change is relatively minor, we anticipate that the updated VIS will be available soon. (2/22/12)
• New interim Td/Tdap VIS posted. There are minor wording changes throughout, and a conversion to the new VIS format. The main reason for the change is to incorporate updated ACIP recommendations regarding children 7 through 9 years of age, adults 65 and older, and pregnant women; and to add a paragraph about the risk of syncope. Because of this addition to the "risks" section, we encourage providers to begin using the updted edition as soon as possible. (1/24/12)

Hepatitis A

• VIS update published. An updated (interim) hepatitis A VIS was posted today, mainly to include indications for families with newly arriving adopted children and post-exposure prophylaxis. As always, we prefer that providers begin using an updated VIS soon after publication; however, because this update doesn't affect contraindications or adverse events, providers may choose to use existing stores of the existing VIS. (10/25/11)

Hepatitis B

Meningococcal

• Minor change. The first section of the Meningococcal VIS (dated 10/14/11) was changed slightly to harmonize the language describing meningococcal disease complications with language in the ACIP recommendations. No other changes to the VIS were made, the edition date will not change, and current stocks of the VIS needn't be discarded. (9/14/12)

MMRV

Rabies

New Multi-vaccine VIS

• Multi-vaccine VIS is being updated; current edition may still be used. This VIS is being updated to reflect, among other things, the addition of intussusception as a rare adverse event for rotavirus. In interim edition should be available soon. Until it is, remember that the law encourages providers to supplement VISs either verbally or with written materials when appropriate.  This is a situation in which a practice should consider providing a brief printed supplement (using the same wording as on the rotavirus VIS) or make sure whoever administers the vaccinations discusses this issue with parents. An alternative, of course, is to give the rotavirus VIS separately. (8/24/12)

Rotavirus

HPV (Human Papillomavirus)

• Gardasil VIS updated. An updated VIS for Gardasil (Cervarix VIS is unchanged) has been posted. The main change is to incorporate ACIP's decision to recommend the vaccine routinely for adolescent males. Because using the previous VIS could cause confusion about this recommendation, we recommend beginning to use the new VIS as soon as possible. (2/22/12)

Zoster

Varicella

DTaP

MMR

• Updated MMR VIS posted. This update is the first step of the process to convert the MMR VIS to a final (rather than interim) version.
  Summary of changes:
  There are minor wording changes throughout. A sentence in Section 2 has been added noting that children younger than 12 months who are traveling overseas should get a dose of MMR. In Section 3, a note has been added asking the patient to tell their provider if they received another vaccine within the past 4 weeks (to alert the provider of the possibility of administering two live vaccines too close together). In Section 4, the statement that minor problems usually occur 7-12 days after the shot was changed to the more accurate 6-14 days, and the box noting the risk of adverse events following MMRV was removed, as it is not relevant for patients receiving MMR.
  This VIS is the first to feature a 2D barcode, which will allow providers to scan selected information into the patient's record or into an immunization information system. See the All VISs news for more information.
  As always, it is preferable to begin using the new VIS immediately, but because there are no major changes involving contraindications or risks in this update, the previous edition may be used until stocks are depleted. (4/24/12)

Pneumococcal

Japanese Encephalitis

• New JE VIS released. The updated VIS reflects the fact that Ixiaro is now the only available vaccine for Japanese encephalitis. Minor changes concern patients younger than 17 (who can no longer be advised to get JE-VAX) and recommendations for booster doses. See the Note to Providers (also accessible from the main VIS page) for more information on these topics. Existing stocks of the previous (3/1/10) Ixiaro VIS may still be used, although it refers to JE-VAX as still being available. (12/7/11)

Anthrax

Yellow Fever

Adenovirus

• Adenovirus VIS added. Recently a new adenovirus vaccine was licensed and a VIS created for it. NOTE that while this VIS is available on CDC's VIS webpage, adenovirus vaccine is approved only for military recruits, who are at increased risk for outbreaks of respiratory illness caused by adenovirus. (7/21/11)

Polio

Typhoid

• Minor change. The 5/29/12 typhoid VIS stated that oral typhoid vaccine should be delayed until at least 3 days after "certain" antibiotics. This wording was inadvertently held over from the previous VIS. The VIS has been changed to remove the word "certain." The edition date has not changed. Copies of the VIS already printed needn't be replaced, but be aware that the precaution applies to all antibiotics. (6/18/12)
• Typhoid VIS update. The typhoid VIS got its first update since 2004. The main reason for the update was to clarify the dosing schedule for the oral typhoid vaccine, which some readers of the previous VIS found confusing. There are other, mostly minor, changes, the most significant of which is a waiting period of 3 days (rather than 24 hours) after certain antibiotics before receiving the oral vaccine. (5/29/12)

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