WHO advisory group to discuss monkeypox, polio, COVID and Ebola vaccines Oct. 3-6

The World Health Organization’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization will meet this coming Monday through Thursday, Oct. 3-6. The agenda for this invitation-only meeting, which will include 15 SAGE members, includes timely discussions on vaccines and immunization policies for monkeypox, polio, COVID-19 and Ebola:

Tuesday, Oct. 4: Discussion of “WHO’s strategy on Monkeypox vaccination in context of the Public Health emergency of international concern (PHEIC).” Consideration will also be given to “Post-exposure vaccination,” “Pre-exposure vaccination target groups” and “Vaccine choices.”

Wednesday, Oct. 5: Discussion of the “current status of the polio eradication programme and of the implementation of the new polio eradication strategy.” Updates will also be given “on the use and clinical development of novel OPVs.”

COVID-19 “variant-containing” vaccines and their policy recommendations will also be discussed. The “Corbevax (Biological E) COVID-19 vaccine” will be reviewed, and policy recommendations for use of this vaccine “once EUL is obtained” will be discussed.  

Thursday, Oct. 6: Discussion of Ebola vaccines. One focus will be to “review the current SAGE recommendations for use of rVSV ZEBOV GP and Ad26 + MVA Ebola vaccines and discuss relevant adjustments to: ‘Response to outbreaks’ and ‘preventive vaccination (in the absence of an outbreak).’ ” The delivery strategies, duration of protection and need for booster doses will be addressed.

As is well known, each of these four viruses are causing disease now, and these vaccines and related policies are already under public discussion. This meeting will help inform vaccine policy recommendations and the international responses to these four viruses.