Association of Immunization Managers Announces the 2022 Bull’s-Eye Award Winners

The 2022 Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) Bull’s-Eye Awards go to the Philadelphia Department of Public Health Division of Disease Control for their initiative Increasing COVID-19 & Routine Vaccine Access for People Experiencing Homelessness in Philadelphia; Minnesota Department of Health for their initiative Using a novel partnership to measure vaccine uptake in populations of interest; and the Washington State Department of Health, Center for Health Promotion and Education for their initiative Vaccinate WA. 

The AIM Bull’s-Eye Award for Innovation and Excellence in Immunization is presented to three state, territorial or urban area immunization programs (awardees) annually in recognition of an outstanding immunization initiative. The award recognizes immunization strategies that “hit their mark,” achieving goals and increasing awareness by encouraging replication in other programs. This year’s honorable mention goes to the Chicago Department of Public Health for their initiative Healthy Chicago Equity Zones (HCEZ) -Vaccine Equity Project.

Highlights from the 2022 winning and honorable mention programs:

• The Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) Division of Disease Control’s initiative worked with partners to bring vaccine services to people experiencing homelessness. PDPH used a mobile team to meet individuals where they were—whether that be on the street or in a shelter.
• The Minnesota Department of Health’s (MDH’s) initiative combined Minnesota Immunization Information Connection (MIIC) immunization data with demographic data and medical history data from large health systems in Minnesota, allowing MDH to review vaccination rates using indicators not possible with MIIC data alone, including homelessness status, interpreter use, co-morbidities, and substance use disorder, among others.
• The Washington State Department of Health’s (WA DOH’s) initiative increased COVID-19 vaccination rates among typically underserved populations by working in partnership with communities to understand the attitudes, beliefs, barriers, and motivators regarding the vaccine and create an effective education campaign.
• The Chicago Department of Public Health’s initiative worked with community-based organizations in all regions of the city to empower them to own the health work in their region.

“AIM is proud of the incredible accomplishments of the Philadelphia, Minnesota, and Washington immunization programs. Congratulations to these recipients of the 2022 AIM Bull’s-Eye Award, your work is truly inspiring!” said AIM Executive Director Claire Hannan.

Visit the AIM website for additional information regarding the Bull’s-Eye Award and the innovative initiatives of immunization programs.

About Association of Immunization Managers:

The Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) is a nonprofit membership association comprised of representatives from 64 federally funded state, territorial and local National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases awardees. AIM is dedicated to working with its partners nationwide to reduce, eliminate, or eradicate vaccine-preventable diseases. AIM also works to ensure the success of its members by providing support in their programming interests. Since 1999, AIM has enabled collaboration among immunization managers to effectively control vaccine-preventable diseases and improve immunization coverage in the United States. For more information on AIM, please visit www.immunizationmanagers.org/.

About Association of Immunization Managers

The Association of Immunization Managers (AIM), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit association, is dedicated
to establishing a nation free of vaccine-preventable disease. AIM members are the leaders of
state, local, and territorial immunization programs—directing the public health efforts designed to
keep children and adults vaccinated and protected against disease. Since 1999, AIM has
provided a national voice for immunization programs and a forum for program managers to learn
from each other, confront challenges, and achieve success. Since its inception, AIM has gathered
and shared information with its members on policy implementation, legislative issues,
programmatic successes, and more. For more information on AIM, please
visit www.immunizationmanagers.org.

Note: The inside story of the race to save lives and end a pandemic is featured in a new book
entitled Vaccinating America, available now from the American Public Health Association Press.
Brent Ewig, AIM’s Chief Policy and Government Relations Officer, is a co-author.