Frequently Asked Questions

Vaccine Recommendations for Healthy Adolescents

1. What do national experts recommend for meningococcal vaccination in healthy adolescents?
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends meningococcal vaccination for all healthy adolescents.

• Children should receive the meningococcal conjugate (also known as the MenACWY vaccine) at age 11-12, and a booster dose at 16 years old.

  • The following schedule is recommended for catch-up MenACWY vaccination:

    • Age 13–15 years: 1 dose now and booster at age 16–18 years (minimum interval: 8 weeks)

    • Age 16–18 years: 1 dose

• Teens and young adults (16 through 23 years old) may also receive the MenB vaccine (2-dose series), preferably at 16 through 18 years old.

• Combination meningococcal vaccines are now available. MenABCWY (pentavalent meningococcal) vaccination is a recommended alternative option for patients aged 10 or older who are receiving MenACWY and MenB vaccines at the same visit. 

2. What is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendation for meningococcal vaccination in healthy adolescents?
The American Society for Meningitis Prevention aligns its guidance with the AAP's recommendations and provides links to CDC recommendations for reference.

3. What is shared clinical decision-making?
Shared clinical decision-making means your provider helps you decide whether vaccination is right for you based on your personal risk, health history, and preferences. There is no prescribed set of considerations or decision points in the decision-making process.

4. My child has already been vaccinated against meningococcal meningitis. Do they need any other meningitis vaccine?
The meningitis vaccine your child may have received when they were younger most likely didn’t include Meningitis B. There are 5 vaccine-preventable groups (A, B, C, W, Y) of meningococcal meningitis in the U.S. To help protect against ALL vaccine-preventable groups, ask their provider if they are vaccinated against ALL 5 types of meningococcal bacteria most likely to cause meningococcal meningitis: A, B, C, W, and Y.

Vaccine Recommendations for Certain High-Risk Groups or Populations

1. Who is considered high risk?
Some people need earlier or additional vaccines because of medical conditions, travel, or living situations. For specific dosing, visit the 2026 AAP Immunization Schedule (pgs. 10-11)

The AAP recommends MenACWY vaccination for certain high-risk groups, including:

• Anatomic or functional asplenia (including sickle cell disease, chronic GVHD, etc), HIV infection, persistent complement component deficiency, complement inhibitor (e.g, eculizumab, ravulizumab)

• Travel to countries with hyperendemic or epidemic meningococcal disease, including countries in the African meningitis belt or during the Hajj

• Military recruits

• First-year college students living in residential housing should receive at least 1 dose of MenACWY within 5 years of entering college. The preferred timing of the most recent dose is on or after their 16th birthday

• Adolescent vaccination of children who received MenACWY prior to age 10 years:

  • Children for whom boosters are recommended because of an ongoing increased risk of meningococcal disease (eg, those with complement component deficiency, HIV, or asplenia)

  • Children for whom boosters are not recommended (eg, a healthy child who received a single dose for travel to a country where meningococcal disease is endemic)

The AAP recommends MenB vaccination for certain high-risk groups, including:

• Anatomic or functional asplenia (including sickle cell disease, chronic GVHD, etc), persistent complement component deficiency, complement inhibitor (e.g, eculizumab, ravulizumab)

Children aged 10 years and older at increased risk may receive meningococcal pentavalent products (e.g., Penbraya or Penmenvy) as an alternative to separate administration of MenACWY and MenB when both vaccines would be given on the same clinic day.

• Penbraya or Penmenvy can be used for booster doses if separated by at least 6 months from the previous dose

• Penbraya and Penmenvy are not interchangeable

• Use the same type of MenB-containing vaccine for all doses, including booster doses

Types of Vaccines

1. What brands of MenACWY vaccines are there?
Menveo® and MenQuadfi® are the two MenACWY vaccines – also known as meningococcal conjugate vaccines – available in the U.S. Both vaccines help protect against serogroups A, C, W, and Y. MenACWY vaccines are interchangeable; the same vaccine product is recommended, but not required, for all doses.

2. What brands of MenB vaccines are there?
Bexsero® and Trumenba® are the two MenB vaccines available in the U.S. Both help protect against meningococcal serogroup B. MenB vaccines are not interchangeable, and both brands require multiple doses. People must get the same vaccine brand for all doses of MenB. If an adolescent receives different products at any dose, proceed with the next scheduled dose of the selected product, with a minimum of 1 month between the last dose of either product.

3. What brands of MenABCWY vaccines are there?
Penbraya™ and Penmenvy are the two MenABCWY vaccine brands available.

4. Which meningococcal vaccine brand should I get?
The AAP and CDC both have no preference on which product is used.

Cost

1. Does insurance cover meningococcal vaccines? Yes. Most private insurers are likely to cover the meningococcal vaccines for teens and young adults. In addition, the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program will provide meningococcal vaccines at no cost for eligible students until their 19th birthday.

2. How much do meningococcal vaccines cost? The list price of meningococcal vaccines varies significantly depending on the contract and potential discounting with each customer, as vaccine manufacturers negotiate directly with providers. Latest pricing can be found on the Current CDC Vaccine Price List (2026).

Other Types of Meningitis

The American Society for Meningitis Prevention is currently focused on preventing meningococcal meningitis, a severe form of bacterial meningitis. For resources and information on other forms of meningitis, we recommend visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's meningitis page. The Confederation of Meningitis Organizations is also a valuable resource in the quest to defeat meningitis.