AVAC Leads a Letter in Support of the Protecting Seniors Through Immunization Act

AVAC led over 80 stakeholders in sending a letter to Congress urging support of the Protecting Seniors Through Immunization Act (S.912/H.R.1978), a bill that helps strengthen vaccine uptake by improving education and equitable access to recommended vaccines for Medicare beneficiaries.

May 27, 2021 

Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Speaker Pelosi, and Minority Leaders McConnell and McCarthy: 

During Older Americans Month, we, the undersigned organizations that care about healthy aging, write to offer our strong support for the Protecting Seniors Through Immunization Act (S. 912/H.R. 1978). This bipartisan, bicameral legislation, led by Senators Hirono, Capito, Whitehouse, and Scott, and Representatives Kuster and Bucshon is especially important in the wake of coronavirus public health crisis. 

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 50,000 adults died from vaccine-preventable diseases each year. Millions more suffer the health effects of those diseases, causing them to miss work to care for themselves or others and leaving them unable to engage in their routine activities. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this, causing adults to delay or avoid interactions with the health care system for preventative services. A component of combatting COVID-19 is a wider adoption of preventive health strategies to reduce the burden of co-morbid conditions that put people at higher risk of worse outcomes of COVID-19. Immunizing against all vaccine-preventable diseases will both contribute to better health outcomes overall and preserve vital capacity at hospitals by reducing preventable admissions. Despite the well-known benefits of immunization, adult coverage lagged behind federal targets for most commonly recommended vaccines. 

The Protecting Seniors Through Immunization Act will help strengthen vaccine uptake by improving education and equitable access to recommended vaccines for Medicare beneficiaries. It will bring much needed parity to the out-of-pocket payment required of Medicare beneficiaries for vaccines covered under Part B and Part D. Copayments apply only to vaccines covered under Medicare Part D (tetanus-diphtheria-acellular pertussis (Tdap) and varicella zoster (shingles)), and vary widely across plans. Immunizations should be available with no cost to the beneficiary in the same way vaccines are covered under Part B (Covid-19, flu, pneumococcal). Removing this barrier will provide a direct financial and health benefit for people age 65 and over and will help to improve our national preparedness among the Medicare population. 

Thank you for your consideration of support. 

Sincerely, 

Adult Vaccine Access Coalition 

Alliance for Aging Research 

Alliance for Immunizations in Michigan 

Alliance for Patient Access 

American Academy of Family Physicians 

American Association of Occupational Health Nurses (AAOHN) 

American Behcet’s Disease Association (ABDA) 

American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM) 

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) 

American Immunization Registry Association (AIRA) 

American Kidney Fund 

American Lung Association 

American Pharmacists Association (APhA) 

American Public Health Association (APHA) 

American Society on Aging 

Answer2Cancer 

Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO) 

Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) 

Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) 

Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF) 

AstraZeneca 

Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) 

California Immunization Coalition 

CancerCare 

Caregiver Action Network 

Caring Ambassadors Program 

Coalition of Wisconsin Aging and Health Groups 

COPD Foundation 

Dynavax 

Families Fighting Flu 

Generations United 

Geriatric Medicine Pas 

Global Healthy Living Foundation 

GSK 

HealthHIV 

HealthyWomen 

Hep B United 

Hepatitis B Foundation 

Idaho Immunization Clinic 

Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) 

Immunize Colorado 

Immunize Nevada 

Immunize Ohio 

ImmunizeTN 

Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) 

Justice in Aging 

KelseyCare Advantage 

Kelsey-Seybold Clinic Clinic 

Kimberly Coffey Foundation 

Lupus and Allied Diseases Association, Inc. 

Lupus Foundation of America 

Medical University of South Carolina 

Medicago 

Merck 

Moderna 

National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) 

National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs (NANASP) 

National Black Nurses Association (NBNA) 

National Caucus and Center on Black Aging 

National Coalition for LGBT Health 

National Consumers League 

National Council of Asian Pacific Islander Physicians (NCAPIP) 

National Education Association (NEA) 

National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) 

National Grange 

National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA) 

National Viral Hepatitis Roundtable (NVHR) 

Novavax 

Patient Access Network (PAN) Foundation 

Pfizer 

Physician Assistants in Hospice and Palliative Medicine (PAHPM) 

Pennsylvania Immunization Coalition 

RetireSafe 

Sanofi 

Scientific Technologies Corporation (STC) 

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 

The AIDS Institute 

The Arizona Partnership for Immunization 

The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) 

The Immunization Partnership 

Triage Cancer 

Trust for America’s Health 

Tulsa Area Immunization Coalition 

University of Pennsylvania 

Vaccinate Your Family 

Vaccine Ambassadors 

Valneva 

WomenHeart: The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease 

Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP)