New pneumonia vaccine advice will save lives

If you or a loved one has ever had pneumonia, you understand how debilitating the disease can be. I thankfully was healthy enough to survive my bout with pneumonia, but not everyone does, which is why I am grateful that more Americans are now eligible for vaccines that help prevent the spread of invasive pneumococcal disease, which can cause pneumonia, meningitis and blood infection.

In October, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted overwhelmingly to update its recommendation for pneumococcal vaccines. Now all adults aged 50 and older are recommended to get the shot. The previous recommendation was for adults 65 and older, which can be too late for some, including me.

In January 2018, I thought I had a bad cold. I was dealing with a terrible cough, chest pain, and exhaustion. When I finally ended up in the hospital needing breathing treatments, we realized this was beyond a normal cold or bronchial infection. Pneumonia took me out for the next six weeks. I couldn’t work, I could barely eat or drink. I’m an otherwise healthy, on-the-go person. This disease leveled me. And because I was 64 at the time I caught it, I hadn’t yet been vaccinated. Make no mistake, I had my sleeve rolled up and was ready for my shot when my birthday rolled around later that year.

I’m far from the only person who has dealt with pneumococcal disease.

Roughly 150,000 people in the U.S. are hospitalized each year with pneumococcal pneumonia and 1 in 20 of those patients dies. The risk is greater for older Americans, as is the risk of their cases being fatal.

These numbers increase for racial and ethnic minorities. Black patients are more likely to get pneumonia, be hospitalized longer, and suffer worse economic impacts than non-Blacks. This is due in part to the fact that Black Americans have far greater rates of chronic diseases — including cancer, heart disease and diabetes. African Americans are 60% more likely to develop diabetes than white adults.

Vaccination rates are also considerably lower for Black, Hispanic and Asian adults when compared to white adults.

That is why my organization joined forces with other aging and patient advocacy organizations to urge the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to make this change.

As we head into another respiratory season, I urge all adults aged 50 and older to talk to their health care provider about getting vaccinated against pneumococcal disease.

The life you save could be your own.

This guest essay reflects the views of Karyne Jones, president and chief executive of the National Caucus and Center on Black Aging Inc.