Pharmacists and Vaccines

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Anchor lead: Allowing pharmacists to administer vaccines to kids will expand access, Elizabeth Tracey reports

Pharmacists are now allowed to give vaccines to most children, the federal government has mandated. Aaron Milstone, a pediatric infectious disease expert at Johns Hopkins, says especially now, that should enable many more children to obtain needed vaccinations.

Milstone: Increasing access to vaccines is great for children. Doing it safely is also important. As long as pharmacists are prepared for reactions that either kids or adults can have, then I think increasing the access to vaccines is a positive thing. Any concern I have would be way overpowered by the benefits of increasing access to vaccination. I think having a vaccine registry really will facilitate good communication and record keeping about places like pharmacies giving vaccines. :32

Milstone notes that parents should likely keep their own record of their children’s vaccinations as well as assure that their child’s medical home is also informed. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.