OBJECTIVES: In 2023 the United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines for patients 60+ years old (May) and pregnant individuals (August). Given RSVs burden on the healthcare system, continued monitoring of RSV trends and seasonality are key but surveillance efforts may be better informed by also understanding vaccination rates. We aim to assess trends in RSV vaccine administrations overlayed on trends in RSV cases to evaluate the potential impact of these vaccines.

METHODS: We used IQVIA’s unprojected longitudinal pharmacy claims data (LRx) and open-source medical claims data (Dx) to measure RSV vaccinations and RSV diagnoses over time (from 2018 to 2023) and geography (census region). We linked RSV cases to social vulnerability indices at the county level to evaluate social determinants of health and public health burden. We assessed RSV case trends by care settings and social vulnerability indices.

RESULTS: From the first week in August through last week in November (2023) RSV vaccine administrations increased from 548 to ~476,000 per week, peaking in mid-October, with the greatest (per capita) uptake observed in the Midwest. During that time, RSV cases increased from >3,000 to >44,000, peaking in mid-November; since 2018 the South has had case peaks several weeks earlier than other regions. There was a ~61% decrease comparing weekly peak RSV rates from 2023 to 2022. With respect to social vulnerability, we observed notably higher RSV case rates in counties with a greater proportion of racial and ethnic minorities, and to a lesser extent those 65 years and older.

CONCLUSIONS: RSV surveillance is important given the public health consequences associated with its seasonal trends that align with other common respiratory diseases. While there has been significant uptake of the RSV vaccine throughout the US, it is too early to tell whether it has impacted RSV rates.