National Immunization Awareness Month

August is National Immunization Awareness Month, an annual observance highlighting the importance of getting recommended vaccines at various life stages. The CDC offers graphics with key messages and sample newsletter content to help communicate about immunization during August and throughout the year. CDC also offers resources geared towards specific audiences, including women, pregnant women, and children.

Did you know?

Vaccine-preventable diseases are still a threat, and vaccination is the best protection.

• Flu can be more serious for people who are pregnant as well as the developing baby. Changes in the immune system, heart, and lungs during pregnancy make pregnant people more prone to severe illness from flu. The risk of premature labor and delivery is increased in people who are pregnant with flu. 
• Whooping cough is very serious for babies because it can cause them to stop breathing. Since 2010, the CDC has seen between 10,000 and 50,000 cases of whooping cough each year in the United States. Most of the deaths each year are in babies younger than 3 months old. Getting a Tdap vaccine during pregnancy will give the baby some protection against whooping cough until they are old enough to receive their own vaccines. 

Children

COVID-19 disrupted routine well-child visits for many children over the last year. As opportunities for in-person learning and play continue to grow, getting kids caught up on recommended vaccines is an important step to help protect them. CDC offers several resources for encouraging routine childhood vaccinations:

• Social media content that can be customized
• A web feature link to use in digital communications (e.g., social media and newsletters)
• Infographics
• A newsletter template for emails and other digital communications
• A call to action that outlines steps to encourage getting caught up on vaccinations

They also offer childhood vaccination tools (see below) and Spanish Materials for Parents.
 

Women

For those who are pregnant, getting vaccinated can help protect mom and baby after birth by passing on antibodies. These antibodies can give your baby protection from flu and whooping cough until it is time for their own vaccines.

• A flu vaccine during any trimester of each pregnancy provides the best protection against flu, and can protect the baby for the first several months after birth when they’re too young to be vaccinated.
• All pregnant people are recommended to get a whooping cough shot (Tdap) during the 27th through 36th week of each pregnancy. Getting a Tdap vaccine during pregnancy provides the best protection against whooping cough for mom and baby in the first few months of life before the baby is old enough to get their own whooping cough shots.

CDC offers an Interactive Vaccine Guide, which provides information on the vaccines recommended during pregnancy and throughout a child’s life, and an Adult Vaccine Assessment Tool (also below) for information on vaccines that may be needed based on age, health conditions, job, and other factors.

Participants should be encouraged to talk to their doctor, nurse, or other healthcare professional to ensure they, their child, and their family are up to date on recommended vaccines.

Updated: June 2024