Why Adult Immunization Matters
Immunization is a key part of disease prevention throughout adulthood. Sustained, age-appropriate vaccination reduces individual risk, protects vulnerable populations, and strengthens health systems' capacity to prevent and respond to infectious disease threats, reinforcing population-level resilience across every stage of adult life.
Where Coverage Breaks Down
Immunization programs remain concentrated in early childhood, while vaccination across adolescence, adulthood, and older age is delivered through fragmented approaches. Missed opportunities are common and immunization is not consistently integrated into routine care, limiting its role as a continuous prevention strategy.
From Evidence to Implementation
Closing these gaps requires a shift toward integrated, life-course-oriented immunization. This work spans developing age-specific vaccine schedules and recommendations, advancing emerging vaccine technologies and combination vaccines, strengthening vaccine confidence and uptake, and embedding immunization into routine healthcare policy.
