Position Statement on Immunization

Supporting Evidence-Informed Policies to Prevent Disease and Promote Public Health

On behalf of the American Academy of Nursing (Academy), please see below the organization's position statement supporting evidence-informed vaccination and immunization policies. The Academy serves the public by advancing health policy through the generation, synthesis, and dissemination of nursing knowledge. Academy Fellows are inducted into the organization for their extraordinary contributions to improving health locally and globally. With more than 3,200 Fellows, the Academy represents nursing’s most accomplished leaders in policy, research, administration, practice, and academia.

The Academy has long supported immunization as a critical intervention to reduce the incidence of vaccine-preventable disease and promote healthy lives for all people.^1,2,3 Declining immunization rates due to vaccine hesitancy, vaccine-related misinformation, increased nonmedical exemptions,⁴ and disparities as well as coverage, access, and financial barriers⁵ presents a public health crisis. To reduce the spread and resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases and prevent higher rates of morbidity and mortality across the lifespan, a comprehensive approach involving clinicians, health systems, industry partners, communities, and local, state, and federal government as well as global networks is necessary.

Policy Recommendations:

Immunization is critical for public health promotion and reducing the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases on an individual, community, national, and global level. Furthermore, immunization supports increased global prosperity, reduced burden and cost on health care systems, and improved health protection across the lifespan. The Academy urges increased action to address barriers to vaccination and expand access to vaccines.

1. Protect, increase, and promote federal funding for the CDC and maintain grounding in rigorous scientific evaluation to enable disease prevention, education, and control efforts at the local, state, and federal levels.
2. Support expansion of health insurance coverage (both public and private) to enable people to connect with clinicians, including Primary Care Clinicians, and receive vaccines in accordance with recommended schedules.
3. Encourage expanded funding for programs that connect individuals and communities with vaccines, such as the Vaccines for Children and Federal Retail Pharmacy programs, and maintain requirements for health insurance plans to cover the cost of recommended vaccines across the lifespan.
4. Improve access to vaccines with community-based approaches by bolstering state and federal funding and through avenues beyond clinician health offices, including making vaccines available in pharmacies, local health departments, schools, and community centers.
5. Track and examine data related to nonmedical exemptions for required vaccines to develop strategies to counteract public health implications for increased exemption rates.
6. Increase funding for federal health agencies to conduct public health research into the origins of misleading information, its effects on vaccine acceptance, and strategies to combat misinformation and promote trust in health institutions.
7. Invest state resources to increase the number of school nurses who can be hired to promote and manage childhood immunizations, educate families, identify immunization gaps, and offer clinics.
8. Ensure appointed members of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and other federal committees overseeing vaccination and immunization recommendations are experienced, credentialed, and have robust expertise and research in vaccines and immunization.
9. Support international partnerships with global organizations including the World Health Organization to ensure that agencies such as the CDC can provide and receive data on trends that inform preparedness and response efforts for emerging global health threats.
10. Improve guidelines and procedures for the Strategic National Stockpile to promote efficient and effective response efforts for health emergencies, including with key aspects such as vaccine tracking, distribution, and expiration patterns.

This position statement originated from the Academy’s Expert Panels on Emerging Infectious Diseases; Bioethics; Child, Adolescent, and Family; Environmental & Public Health; Health Equity; Global Nursing & Health; Health Behavior; and Women’s Health. The Academy’s Expert Panels are the organization’s thought leadership bodies. Through the Expert Panels, Academy Fellows, with subject matter expertise, review the current trends, research, and issues within their field to make informed and evidence-based recommendations. This statement was approved by the Board of Directors on September 17, 2025.

For questions related to this position statement, please contact Christine Murphy, Chief Policy Officer, at cmurphy@AANnet.org.

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[1] American Academy of Nursing. (2021, July 26). Joint Statement in Support of COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates for All Workers in Health and Long-Term Care. https://aannet.org/page/covid-19-vaccine-mandate
[2] Cohen, F. L., & Larson, E. (1996). Emerging infectious diseases: Nursing responses. Nursing Outlook, 44(4), 164–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0029-6554(96)80036-4
[3] American Academy of Nursing. (2023). Meeting's Proceedings: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic: Mobilizing Nursing Leadership to Advance Global Equity. https://aannet.org/page/lessons-from-covid-2022
[4] Seither, R., Yusuf, O.B., Dramann, D., Calhoun, K., Mugerwa-Kasujja, A., & Knighton, C.L. Coverage with Selected Vaccines and Exemption from School Vaccine Requirements Among Children in Kindergarten — United States, 2022–23 School Year. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 72. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7245a2
[5] Hill, H. A., Yankey, D., Elam-Evans, L.D., Mu, Y., Chen, M., Peacock, G., & Singleton, J.A. (2024). Decline in vaccination coverage by age 24 months and vaccination inequities among children born in 2020 and 2021—National immunization survey-child, United States, 2021–2023. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 73. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7338a3