On May 11, the Federal Public Health Emergency for COVID-19 expired. Subsequently, changes under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act have occurred.
Pharmacists may no longer administer routine childhood vaccines to individuals 3-7 years old. Ohio law allows a pharmacist or pharmacy intern, working under an approved physician protocol, to administer:
- Any immunization for any disease to individuals 13 years old and older without a prescription
- Any immunization for any disease to individuals 7-12 years old with a prescription
- FDA authorized COVID-19 vaccines and flu shots to individuals starting at 7 years old (extension down to 3 years old under the PREP act remains in place)
The CDC recommends that everyone ages 6 months and older receive at least 1 bivalent mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna bivalent vaccines are authorized for use in individuals 6 months and older. The monovalent formulations of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are no longer approved. Details are available from the CDC here.