Every winter, a quiet but powerful wave of illness begins to move through communities. As families gather indoors for the holidays and temperatures drop, respiratory viruses find the perfect conditions to spread. Among these threats, respiratory syncytial virus—better known as RSV—poses one of the greatest dangers, particularly to older adults. It may start with symptoms that resemble a common cold, but for high-risk groups, it can become life-threatening. To protect these individuals, health professionals must lean on data, preparation, and proactive vaccination strategies. But here’s where it gets controversial: despite the availability of new vaccines, vaccination rates are still alarmingly low.
Learning From the Past to Protect the Future
Every respiratory virus season tells a story—and those stories matter. The way infection rates rise and fall from one year to the next helps health experts spot patterns, measure the success of prevention campaigns, and anticipate future challenges. No two seasons are identical. Weather changes, social behaviors, and even travel patterns can affect how viruses spread. By studying previous RSV seasons, pharmacists and clinicians can fine-tune outreach plans, understand which age groups need the most protection, and prepare their vaccine supply.
Data review isn’t just a bureaucratic exercise. It influences frontline actions, like how pharmacists design educational materials or plan patient engagement weeks ahead of the winter surge. For example, if data show hospitalizations peaking in early January, pharmacies might front-load their vaccination campaigns in October and November, right before families begin their seasonal gatherings.
Breakthroughs in RSV Vaccines
In 2023, the United States reached a milestone: the first RSV vaccines earned FDA approval. Arexvy (from GSK) and Abrysvo (from Pfizer) were both licensed for adults aged 60 and older, as well as for vulnerable adults in their 50s. Moderna soon followed with mRESVIA in 2024, expanding the protection options even further to at-risk adults as young as 18. These vaccines represent a leap forward in respiratory health. Yet, they only work when people choose to get them.
So what does the data tell us about adoption? That’s where insights from the last two RSV seasons—2023–2024 and 2024–2025—become essential. This information helps healthcare providers, especially pharmacists, understand how vaccine uptake evolves and how they can encourage more participation each year.
When Winter Arrives, RSV Spikes
Every winter tells the same basic story: cold air outside, warm homes filled with people inside—and a sharp rise in viral infections. The 2024–2025 RSV season followed this familiar pattern. According to the CDC’s National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System (NREVSS), RSV positivity climbed rapidly from November 2024 through January 2025. The week of December 21 saw positivity peak at about 11%, slightly below the previous year’s peak of 12.75%, which had arrived weeks earlier around Thanksgiving.
This persistent winter surge gives pharmacists actionable insight. They can time their RSV vaccination drives to precede major holidays—using family gatherings as a persuasive reason for patients to get vaccinated. After all, what better motivation than protecting loved ones from an avoidable illness?
Understanding Hospitalization Trends
Hospital data add another layer to the picture. For older adults, RSV isn’t just a passing sickness—it can mean dehydration, breathing trouble, or the need for oxygen therapy or hospitalization. The CDC’s RSV Hospitalization Surveillance Network reported that the 2024–2025 season reached its peak in early January with nearly 4 hospitalizations per 100,000 people. Among those 65 and older, the rate more than doubled, approaching 9 per 100,000.
Interestingly, rates during the 2023–2024 season were even higher, peaking shortly after Thanksgiving. But here’s an unexpected twist: while hospitalizations fell sharply by spring in both years, the decline came sooner the previous season. This timeline helps pharmacists make smarter preparations—not only for vaccination outreach but also for treatment stock and patient counseling when hospitalizations start to rise.
Vaccination Uptake: Progress, But Not Enough
Vaccines are one of the most powerful tools against RSV, yet adoption remains far below ideal. CDC data show that by the end of the 2024–2025 respiratory season, less than half of adults aged 75 and older had received an RSV vaccine. The numbers for the 60–74-year group were even lower—about 38%. Those figures reveal an unsettling truth: millions of older adults remain unprotected despite having access to lifesaving vaccines.
Still, there are promising signs. In retail pharmacies alone, millions of RSV vaccine doses were administered—far outpacing those given in physician offices. This shift underscores the growing influence of pharmacists, who not only deliver vaccines but also advocate for them, explain their benefits, and reassure hesitant patients.
But here’s where the debate heats up: are public health campaigns doing enough to reach the most at-risk groups? Some experts argue the efforts fall short in rural areas or among populations less likely to visit pharmacies regularly. Others call for combining RSV education with broader flu and COVID-19 vaccination outreach. Which approach will ultimately boost coverage most effectively?
Turning Data Into Action
Although fewer doses were given overall in 2024–2025 compared with the prior season, a higher percentage went to individuals at greatest risk—an encouraging trend. Still, the data reveal a persistent gap between vaccination potential and actual coverage. The challenge for the next season will be turning better awareness into stronger action.
The good news? Pharmacists now have abundant real-time tools, from CDC dashboards to pharmacy data platforms, that let them track infection rates, vaccination progress, and hospitalization patterns. These insights can drive smarter campaigns timed around winter trends and community needs.
Preparing for the Next Season
The lesson from recent RSV seasons is clear: successful prevention relies on anticipation. As pharmacists gear up for another respiratory virus season, their expanding role in patient education and vaccination counseling will be crucial. Each data point from past years helps sharpen those efforts, bridging the gap between science and everyday patient care.
But here’s the ultimate question: will improved awareness and vaccine accessibility finally translate into higher vaccination rates next year? Or will RSV continue to find gaps in our defenses? Share your thoughts—should pharmacies take the lead in nationwide RSV outreach, or should the responsibility shift more directly to public health agencies?
