Pneumococcal Vaccine Update: Simplifying Schedules for Primary Care Clinicians and Benefits of Vaccination in Older Adults
Released On
July 21, 2025
Expires On
July 20, 2026
Media Type
Internet
Completion Time
90 minutes
Specialty
Primary Care
Topic(s)
Pneumococcal disease, Vaccination/Vaccines
This activity is provided by ACOFP and MLI
This activity is supported through an independent educational grant from Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA..
Credit Available
- Osteopathic Physicians — maximum of 1.5 AOA Category 1-A credits
- Allopathic Physicians — maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™
- ABIM MOC — up to 1.5 MOC points
- Physician Associates — 1.5 AAPA Category 1 CME credits
- Nurses — 1.5 Nursing Contact Hours
All other healthcare professionals completing this course will be issued a statement of participation.
Target Audience
This activity is designed for Primary care professionals, including physicians, NPs, PAs, and nurses who manage older patients who are eligible for the pneumococcal vaccine in the United States.
Program Overview
Pneumococcal disease remains a leading cause of preventable illness and death among older adults, yet vaccination rates remain unacceptably low. This activity equips primary care professionals with up-to-date guidance on pneumococcal vaccine recommendations, mechanisms of action, safety and efficacy data, and practical strategies for increasing vaccine uptake. Learners will explore the CDC’s ACIP recommendations, including simplified vaccination schedules and expanded eligibility for adults aged 50 and older. The program also emphasizes the importance of team-based approaches to identifying vaccine-eligible patients and initiating meaningful conversations to improve adherence. Through evidence-based insights and actionable tools, clinicians will be better prepared to close persistent practice gaps and protect aging adults from serious pneumococcal infections.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this CE activity, participants should be better able to:
- Evaluate the health burden of pneumococcal disease in older adults and its role as a vaccine-preventable illness
- Incorporate the latest clinical data, including mechanisms of action, safety profiles, and efficacy rates into the use of vaccines for pneumococcal disease prevention
- Apply the recommended pneumococcal vaccination administration schedules in accordance with current guideline recommendations
- Implement strategies to enhance the roles of patient care team members to prompt and facilitate clinician-patient conversations about pneumococcal vaccination, ensuring that older adults receive timely and appropriate vaccinations
Faculty
Dale W. Bratzler, DO, MPH
Dean, Hudson College of Public Health
Professor, Colleges of Medicine and Public Health
University of Oklahoma Health Sciences
Oklahoma City, OK, USA
Sharon Wang, DO, MSHPE, FIDSA
Public Health Officer of San Bernardino County, CA
San Bernardino County, CA, USA
Accreditation Statement
In support of improving patient care, Medical Learning Institute Inc is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.
Credit Designation
Osteopathic Physician Continuing Medical Education
The American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians (ACOFP) is accredited by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) to provide osteopathic continuing medical education for physicians.
ACOFP designates this enduring activity for a maximum of 1.5 AOA Category 1-A credits and will report continuing medical education (CME) credits commensurate with the physician’s participation in this program.
Allopathic Physician Continuing Medical Education
Medical Learning Institute Inc (MLI) designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
MOC Statement
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 1.5 MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine’s (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. It is the CME activity provider’s responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC credit.
Participation information will be shared through the ACCME's Program and Activity Reporting System (PARS).
For Physicians requesting MOC credit, the post-test and evaluation are required in their entirety as well as your ABIM ID number, DOB (MM/DD), and a score of 70% or higher is needed to obtain MOC credit.
PAs
Medical Learning Institute Inc has been authorized by the American Academy of PAs (AAPA) to award AAPA Category 1 CME credit for activities planned in accordance with AAPA CME Criteria. This activity is designated for 1.5 AAPA Category 1 CME credits. Approval is valid until July 20, 2026. PAs should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation.
Nursing Continuing Professional Development
Successful completion of this nursing continuing professional development activity will be awarded 1.5 contact hours.
Interprofessional Continuing Education (IPCE) Statement
This activity was planned by and for the healthcare team, and learners will receive 1.5 Interprofessional Continuing Education (IPCE) credits for learning and change.
Disclosures of Conflicts of Interest
Disclosure & Conflict of Interest Policy
ACOFP is committed to providing learners with high-quality CME/CE activities that promote improvements in health care and not those of an ineligible company. In accordance with the ACCME Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education, also adopted by the AOA, ACOFP requires that individuals in a position to control the content of an educational activity disclose all relevant financial relationships with any ineligible company (those whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients). Individuals in a position to control the content may include, but are not limited to, planning committee members, authors, faculty, speakers, reviewers, and activity staff.
Medical Learning Institute Inc is committed to providing high quality continuing education to healthcare professionals, as individuals and teams, with a protected space to learn, teach, and engage in scientific discourse free from influence from ineligible companies that may have an incentive to insert commercial bias into education. To that end, MLI requires faculty, presenters, planners, staff, and other individuals who are in a position to control the content of this CE activity to disclose all financial relationships they have had in the past 24 months with ineligible companies as defined by the ACCME, as related to the content of this CE activity, regardless of the amount or their view of the relevance to the education. All identified COI will be thoroughly vetted and mitigated according to MLI policy. These disclosures will be provided to learners prior to the start of the CE activity.
Faculty Disclosures
Planner/Presenter
Dale W. Bratzler, DO, MPH, has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose for this educational activity.
Planner/Presenter
Sharon Wang, DO, MSHPE, FIDSA, has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose for this educational activity.
Planning Committee and Content/Peer Reviewers
The planners and content/peer reviewers from Medical Learning Institute Inc, the accredited provider, and ACOFP, the joint provider, do not have any relevant financial relationships to disclose with ineligible companies unless listed below.
Instructions for Participation and Credit
Method of Participation
There are no fees for participating in or receiving credit for this CE activity. In order to receive credit, learners must participate in the entire CE activity, complete the activity evaluation form and your certificate of credit will be generated. A passing score of 70% or higher is needed to obtain credit. You will receive your certificate from Medical Learning Institute Inc.
For information on applicability and acceptance of continuing education credit for this CE activity, please consult your professional licensing board.
If you have questions regarding your certificate, please contact MLI at [email protected].
Disclosure of Unlabeled Use
This educational activity may contain discussions of published and/or investigational uses of agents that are not indicated by the FDA. The planners of this CE activity do not recommend the use of any agent outside of the labeled indications. The opinions expressed in the CE activity are those of the presenters and do not necessarily represent the views of the planners. Please refer to the official prescribing information for each product for discussion of approved indications, contraindications, and warnings.
Disclaimer
Participants have an implied responsibility to use the newly acquired information to enhance patient outcomes and their own professional development. The information presented in this CE activity is not meant to serve as a guideline for patient management. Any procedures, medications, or other courses of diagnosis or treatment discussed or suggested in this CE activity should not be used by clinicians without evaluation of their patient's conditions and possible contraindications and/or dangers in use, review of any applicable manufacturer's product information, and comparison with recommendations of other authorities.
About This Activity
Medical Learning Institute Inc and ACOFP are responsible for the selection of this activity’s topics, the preparation of editorial content, and the distribution of this CE activity. Our activities may contain references to unapproved products or uses of these products in certain jurisdictions. The preparation of this activity is supported by educational grants subject to written agreements that clearly stipulate and enforce the editorial independence of Medical Learning Institute Inc.
The materials presented here are used with the permission of the authors and/or other sources. These materials do not necessarily reflect the views of Medical Learning Institute Inc or any of its partners, providers, and/or supporters.
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Contact Information
For CME questions please contact MLI at [email protected]
