8 minute read

NOVEMBER 1, 2023

you so much to our presenters and all involved in planning these sessions. Register today for our November Discovery Session, Immunization Information Systems Annual Report (IISAR). This month was a busy month with an ACIP meeting and meetings on a variety of topics from pandemic preparedness and IIS policies to global vaccine delivery.

I had the opportunity to attend the 17th TechNet meeting in Panama City. This meeting included participants from across the globe and focused on some of the most challenging aspects of delivering vaccines around the world. While perhaps not a surprise, many of the issues that challenge our public health are the same challenges faced globally, such as the workforce, vaccine supply and delivery, and data capture and use. This meeting also reminded me how much our IIS have been developed to meet the needs of delivering vaccines in this country and how we have been using data to reduce our vaccine wastage. Globally, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports more than 50% vaccine wastage around the world, but there is a lack of empirical evidence to support or refute this estimate. Work is being done to define further exactly how much vaccine is wasted as well as ways to reduce wastage. There were also demonstrations of new vaccine delivery methods, such as the microarray patch (MAP), and discussions on the digitization of supply chains, including bar codes on vaccines and the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) in the supply chain. It was interesting to see the bigger picture, but it also made me incredibly proud of all of the hard work you have done and continue to do every single day.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) met on October 25-26 to discuss meningococcal, mpox, RSV for adults, influenza, chikungunya, dengue, COVID-19, and pneumococcal vaccines; 2024 immunization schedules; and an update on COVID-19 and influenza vaccine safety. During the meeting, ACIP voted to approve Pfizer’s MenABCWY vaccine for healthy individuals aged 16–23 years, which may be used when both MenACWY and MenB are indicated at the same visit. ACIP also voted to recommend vaccination with the 2-dose JYNNEOS vaccine series for persons aged 18 years and older at risk for mpox (dose 2 to be administered 28 days after dose 1). A more in-depth summary of the October ACIP meeting and its impact on IIS will be distributed soon.

Rebecca Coyle, MSEd

Executive Director

In an effort to enhance standards alignment across the community and to contribute to the next evolution of the HL7 Implementation Guide (IG), the Standards and Interoperability Steering Committee (SISC) will convene two technical small groups in the upcoming year. These sessions are scheduled for winter 2023 and spring 2024.

During the October 11 SISC meeting, AIRA and CDC reviewed four proposed group topics:

• Aligning field usages and error codes
• Clinical decision support (CDS) in query response (RSP) messages
• Triggers for updates and queries
• VFC code update

These small groups rely on community champions and volunteers who will work closely with AIRA and CDC over a four-week period to produce guidance documents, test cases, or demonstration software. If you are interested in participating in one of these topic groups or want to learn more, please send an email to Rebecca Sandtveit at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

There’s a little over one month left to submit your abstracts for consideration for the AIRA 2024 National Meeting!

The call for abstracts closes on Sunday, December 3, so be sure to add this deadline to your calendar. Visit our AIRA 2024 National Meeting website for additional information and to view the call for abstracts overview flyer.

And, while you’re at it, you can register to attend and book your hotel (with all accommodations on-site). As an AIRA 2024 National Meeting attendee, you’ll have access to specially priced Disney theme park tickets!

We are looking forward to learning from you May 7–9 in Orlando, Florida!

Register to attend our next Discovery Session on Monday, November 27, from 4 to 5 p.m. ET. During this session you will get an overview of the Immunization Information Systems Annual Report (IISAR). CDC has recently released the 2023 IISAR, which assesses immunization program performance in developing, maintaining, and enhancing IIS. The IISAR is part of the reporting requirement for the 64 immunization programs that receive funding under Section 317b of the Public Health Service Act. The report is due on March 31, 2024, and the performance period is calendar year 2023. The IISAR was revised in 2020 to align with the Data Quality Blueprint and blueprint milestones. Since then, it has been amended to include expectations on reporting COVID and monkeypox data.

Once you have registered, you will receive a confirmation email which contains links to add the meeting to your calendar.

If you’re unable to attend, this session will be recorded and available in the AIRA Repository.

AIRA members can submit and review information requests—a circulation of questions to and answers from the community. To submit an information request to the IIS Community, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with “Information Request” in the subject line.

Information requests are viewable only by individual members and individuals affiliated with member and partner organizations. Recent information requests can be found by using the “Information Requests” filter in the AIRA Repository. Just log in to view these valuable resources! If you have any questions, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Open Information Requests

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is seeking information about whether other IIS have hosted a virtual workshop for their immunization providers and partners. They would like to know if your workshops were successful, what type of presentations were provided, if you had breakout sessions, and if there were some lessons learned that can be shared?

If you are willing to share information, please reach out to Beatrice Salada at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by today, November 1, and don’t forget to include your contact information for follow-up. 

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Updated Vaccine Information Statements Now Live

A new COVID-19 VIS and an updated RSV VIS are now live on the CDC website.

Request for Proposals

The Michigan Department of Technology, Management, and Budget has posted a request for proposals (RFP) for an immunization information system for the state of Michigan. The request can be accessed via https://sigma.michigan.gov/webapp/PRDVSS2X1/AltSelfService. Interested vendors must register to the Michigan SIGMA system through the link above to submit questions on the request and to submit proposals. All questions and answers will be published for all to see. Final proposals are due November 28, 2023. Late responses may be rejected. Vendors are encouraged to complete proposals early in case of any possible errors.

For additional information, please reach out to Adam Griffith at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

We are excited to welcome Skylar Adkins to our AIRA team!

Skylar joined AIRA as the administrative assistant for the Education and Outreach Team in July 2023. Prior to coming to AIRA, Skylar worked as an administrative assistant at a foster care agency, providing executive-level support to the CEO of the organization. Skylar has several years of experience working in administrative roles and over nine years of experience working with nonprofit organizations. Welcome, Skylar!

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