West Coast Health Alliance Releases First Vaccine Guidelines, Aiming to Replace CDC Recommendations

The West Coast Health Alliance (WCHA), formed earlier in September as a response to the perceived politicization of the CDC,¹ announced its first round of recommendations for vaccines to receive ahead of the 2025-2026 winter season.²

This marks the first of the recommendations to be released by WCHA, which has stated that its goal is to provide credible and safe recommendations for vaccinations. The WCHA has developed these recommendations by employing health officers to write them. These health officers are experts in epidemiology and medical doctors who were tasked with reviewing the guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists to formulate the recommendations for their states.

The recommendations from the WCHA primarily focus on COVID-19, flu, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) for children, adults, and pregnant individuals.³ The recommendations advise that all children 6 months and older receive the flu vaccine, all children younger than 8 months get the RSV vaccine, and all children aged 8 to 19 months with risk factors receive the RSV vaccine. All adults are recommended to get the flu vaccine, and those aged 50 to 74 years with risk factors and all adults aged 75 years and older should get the RSV vaccine. Pregnant individuals should receive the flu vaccine, and the RSV vaccine should be received at 32 to 36 weeks gestational age.

The COVID-19 vaccine has more stipulations to receiving it, according to these recommendations. Children between the ages of 6 and 23 months should receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and all children aged 2 to 18 years should receive the vaccine if they have never been vaccinated or have risk factors. Any individuals planning to be pregnant, who are pregnant, or who are breastfeeding should receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Any adult aged 19 to 65 years should receive the vaccine if they have risk factors, are in close contact with individuals with risk factors, or choose to receive the vaccine. All those aged 65 years and older should receive the vaccine.

The recommendations affirm that the WCHA believes that “vaccines are safe, work well, and are the best way to protect against respiratory viruses, including COVID-19, the flu, and RSV.”

Traditionally, the CDC provides vaccine recommendations, informing the public on the age and dose at which each vaccine should be received.⁴ However, these institutions have recently come under fire, as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) had been cleared out by the secretary of HHS, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, in favor of vaccine skeptics.⁵ This has led to ACIP rescinding recommendations for vaccines containing thimerosal, which could impact the availability of vaccines in rural areas.⁶

The FDA also made news recently when they approved the COVID-19 vaccine booster but with limits on patient access.⁷ This decision only officially recommended the vaccine for those aged 65 years and older and any adult with an underlying condition. This was paired with Kennedy’s rescinding of the emergency use authorizations of COVID-19, which ended the initiative to make vaccines available and accessible across the country.⁸

Despite the changes in the FDA recommendation, AHIP announced that it would continue to cover all immunizations recommended by ACIP as of September 1, 2025, without cost-sharing for patients.⁹ However, it is possible for insurance not to cover vaccines due to the updated recommendations, which could present accessibility issues, which ultimately led to the creation of WCHA.

“We want the people who live and work in our states to know that there is a strong public health, healthcare & scientific community that will continue to stand together to provide and use the data and evidence needed for you to make healthy choices, and we are here to protect our communities,” Erica Pan, MD, MPH, director of the California Department of Public Health, said in a statement.²

References

1. Steinzor P. West Coast states form alliance to provide public health recommendations. AJMC^®. September 3, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.ajmc.com/view/west-coast-states-form-alliance-to-provide-public-health-recommendations

2. Following Trump’s politicization of CDC, West Coast states issue unified vaccine recommendations – California breaks from future federal guidance with new law. News release. Governor Gavin Newsom. September 17, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/09/17/following-trumps-politicization-of-cdc-west-coast-states-issue-unified-vaccine-recommendations-california-breaks-from-future-federal-guidance-with-new-law/

3. Public health for all. California Department of Public Health. Updated September 17, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Pages/public-health-for-all/publichealthforall.aspx

4. Health care providers. Immunization schedules. CDC. May 29, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/imz-schedules/index.html

5. Bonavitacola J. Vaccine skeptics among CDC vaccine panel replacements named by RFK Jr. AJMC. June 12, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.ajmc.com/view/vaccine-skeptics-among-cdc-vaccine-panel-replacements-named-by-rfk-jr

6. Bonavitacola J. Federal recommendations for vaccines containing thimerosal rescinded. AJMC. July 24, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.ajmc.com/view/federal-recommendations-for-vaccines-containing-thimerosal-rescinded

7. Jeremias S. COVID-19 vaccine booster receives approval with limits on patient access. AJMC. August 27, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.ajmc.com/view/covid-19-vaccine-booster-receives-approval-with-limits-on-patient-access

8. Emergency use authorization. FDA. Updated September 17, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/mcm-legal-regulatory-and-policy-framework/emergency-use-authorization

9. AHIP statement on vaccine coverage. News release. AHIP. September 16, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.ahip.org/news/press-releases/ahip-statement-on-vaccine-coverage