August is National Immunization Awareness Month

Recognize National Immunization Awareness Month in August

The CMS Office of Minority Health (OMH) recognizes August as National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM). Join us in raising awareness about the importance of immunization for people of all ages. Immunizations can help protect against serious and sometimes deadly diseases. National Immunization Awareness Month is especially important to CMS OMH because research shows that vaccination rates are often lower among adults within racial and ethnic minority populations and for individuals living in underserved communities. These populations are more likely to have chronic health conditions that place them at a higher risk for vaccine preventable infections.

Recognizing National Immunization Awareness Month is part of our strategy to foster innovation by giving tools and resources to empower patients.

We’re calling on our partners to help us share resources that may help high-risk individuals learn about the benefits of immunization and use talk to their doctor about necessary vaccinations. During the month, we encourage health care professionals, community leaders, and organizations to highlight the importance of vaccination. Here are several resources you can use to help start the conversation:

Share Medicare coverage information for vaccinations (Flu, Hepatitis B, Pneumococcal, and Tdap).
Share the latest From Coverage to Care (C2C) resources, including our prevention materials, available in English and Spanish, to help patients understand preventive services that may be available to them at no cost.
For parents with kids heading back to school, check out C2C’s preventive services flyers to learn about covered immunizations for children and teens.
Read about Medicaid’s role in the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment benefit, which provides comprehensive and preventive health care services (including immunizations) for children under age 21 who are enrolled in Medicaid.
Download resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that you can use to promote the importance of vaccination, especially among adults with chronic health conditions.
Talk about immunization using the National Immunization Awareness Month communications toolkit featuring CDC educational materials.
In August, we also recognize National Health Center Week (NHCW) from August 4-August 10 as an opportunity to help raise awareness about the mission and accomplishments of America’s health centers. To learn more, please visit the campaign website at healthcenterweek.org.