The CDC recently released the National, Regional, State and Selected Local Area Vaccination Coverage Among Adolescents Aged 13-17 Years - United States, 2019. Ensuring routine immunization services for adolescents, even during the COVID-19 pandemic, is essential to continuing progress in protecting individuals and communities from vaccine-preventable diseases and outbreaks. This annual report details vaccination coverage for routinely recommended vaccines among adolescents in the District of Columbia, selected local areas, and selected U.S. territories.

Key points from the report include:

• There was continued improvement in HPV and meningococcal vaccination rates among U.S. adolescents.
  • In 2019, 71.5% of adolescents received the first dose of HPV vaccine to start the series, and 54.2% were up to date with the HPV vaccination series.
  • That is an increase from 2018, with 68% of respondents having received the first dose, and 51% being up to date with the HPV vaccination series.

• There continues to be disparities in HPV and meningococcal vaccination rates based on geography.
  • Among adolescents living at or above the poverty level, those living in rural areas had lower coverage for HPV and meningococcal vaccines compared to those in urban areas.

• Despite the steady, overall progress in adolescent vaccination rates, the COVID-19 pandemic now threatens to reverse some of these gains.
  • CDC data show adolescent vaccine orders have slowed in the U.S. this year, with the pandemic causing delays and decreases in the number of adolescents getting their recommended vaccines.
  • Although we have seen some recent rebounds in these vaccine ordering rates, we must remain vigilant in efforts to ensure that children of all ages get the vaccines they need to protect against serious and sometimes deadly disease.

For additional details and information, visit the CDC MMWR webpage.