CDC recommends Tdap for pregnant women

ATLANTA — A panel at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that pregnant women get vaccinated for whooping cough, the CDC said.

A CDC 15-member CDC advisory committee voted 14-0 with one abstention to recommend that prenatal care providers implement a Tdap immunization program for all pregnant women, saying that healthcare personnel should administer a dose of Tdap vaccine during each pregnancy regardless of the patient's prior history of receiving it — administering it immediately after the mother gives birth, if not administering it during pregnancy.

The U.S. is on track to have the highest number of reported cases of whooping cough, also known as pertussis, since 1959, with more than 32,000 cases and 16 deaths, mostly infants.

Interested in this topic? Sign up for our weekly DSN Collaborative Care e-newsletter.