Hepatitis B Vaccine Safety

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The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, voted to restrict access to the Hepatitis B Vaccine for newborns. At Roslindale Pediatrics, we strongly agree with the previous recommendations that all newborns receive this vaccine that is extremely safe. This is still recommended by the Mass DPH and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Before this vaccine was implemented, about 18,000 children under the age of 10 were diagnosed with hepatitis B each year. Since then, it is virtually eliminated in children! To find out more facts about the virus and the vaccine to prevent it click here and here. And feel free to call or message us with any of your questions. We understand this is a confusing time to make decisions about vaccines, and we are here to help with providing evidence based information about the effectiveness and safety of these vaccines!

Vaccination Safety

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Recently, the CDC has changed their website to suggest that vaccines and autism may be related by stating that there is no evidenced based medicine to prove against this. There have been many vigorous evidence based studies showing that there is no link between vaccines and autism. Vaccines are one of our best lines of defense to keep our children protected from deadly diseases, and they have been proven by multiple studies to be extremely safe. If you have any questions about this, please reach out to us or bring up any concerns at your child’s next appointment. We are here to make you feel safe and comfortable with your child’s care!

Here are some links from trusted medical groups:

Statement from Leading Medical, Health and Patient Advocacy Groups on CDC Autism Website Changes

DPH Commissioner rebukes misleading assertions about vaccines and autism

Fact Checked: Vaccines: Safe and Effective, No Link to Autism

Understanding Autism: Information for Families

ByHeart Infant Formula Recall

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The FDA has recalled some batches of a baby formula, ByHeart, for a chance that it is related to botulism in infants. It may not be a direct correlation, but to be cautious they recommended discarding any formula from ByHeart with these batch codes labeled on the bottom of the can:

Batch Code: 251261P2, Use by: 01 Dec 2026

  • Batch Code: 251131P2, Use by: 01 Dec 2026

  • UPC: 5004496800

You can read more about this and what to do for reimbursement on the FDA Website.

Botulism is still very rare in babies, but if you notice your baby seems more tired, not feeding as well, seems less active or sleepy, give us a call.

Late Cancellation and No Show Fee

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Dear Patients and Families,

One of our main goals at Roslindale Pediatrics is to be readily available in service to our patients. When appointments are cancelled last minute or no-shows occur, a slot that would otherwise go to another patient frequently cannot be filled. While we understand that plans change, we will be instituting a $35 fee* for any cancellations / no-shows that occur within 24 hrs of a scheduled appointment. This policy change is effective October 14, 2025. Thank you for your understanding as we work to improve our availability for our patients.

*this fee may be adjusted as necessary in accordance with the specifications of the patient’s insurance policy.

COVID-19 Vaccine Access

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Unfortunately, we are unable to order state funded COVID-10 vaccines for our patients at this time, but Boston Children’s Hospital is offering them for our patients. We are still holding flu vaccine clinics and can offer the flu vaccine at an office visit if you are here or have an upcoming appointment.

Boston Children’s Hospital will host a series of vaccine clinics on the Longwood Campus, taking place most days from now until November 14. Please find the full schedule of BCH Vaccine Clinics here. The clinic is located on the first floor of the hospital. Please direct any questions to the clinic at 617-355-5358. Appointments are not necessary. We have confirmed PPOC patients, including those insured by the ACO, are welcome to attend these clinics. Please note that, due to the lack of state-supplied COVID vaccines, all patients will be informed that their insurance will be billed. While it is likely these vaccines will ultimately be covered by insurance, there is no guarantee commercially insured patients will not have an out-of-pocket expense.  

In addition, the Boston Public Health Commission is hosting free vaccine clinics throughout Boston, many of which will have COVID vaccine for ages 6 months and over. Please click here for a list of available dates and locations. Families may also contact the Mayor’s Health Line for free, confidential, multilingual health information and referral services regardless of immigration status.

You can also bring your child age 5 and older to a local pharmacy to receive the flu and COVID-19 vaccines.

covid and flu vaccine clinic update

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We have had many families reaching out with questions about upcoming flu and Covid vaccinations as respiratory season approaches.

We continue to recommend a yearly flu vaccine for all patients six months and older. We plan to offer our yearly flu vaccine clinics this fall and look forward to seeing many of our patients on our clinic days. We will alert families when we have our dates and times available for our flu clinics.

RPA continues to follow American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations for Covid vaccine eligibility and administration. We are following closely the Massachusetts Department of Public Health guidance on administration which you can find here. Our goal is to obtain Covid vaccines for our patients who are eligible and interested and we will continue to be in touch as we gain more information.

In the meantime, remember to wash your hands, stay home while sick, get adequate rest and enjoy nutritious meals!

Accidental Closure of Portal Messages and Refill Requests

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Our umbrella company, PPOC, had a system glitch yesterday that accidentally closed many messages and refill requests sent through the Epic portal. If your message was affected, you should get a notification. If you sent a message recently and haven’t heard back, please send it again or call if it’s urgent. Thank you for your understanding!

New Prenatal Visits (Copy)

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Roslindale Pediatrics is excited to announce the resumption of our prenatal visits! Two weekday evenings per month, our nurse practitioners Katie Williams and Jen Byrne will host informational sessions from 630 - 7 pm and answer questions from new expecting families. We will begin promptly at 6:30 pm. Please call the office during business hours (9 am - 5 pm Monday through Friday) at 617-522-3100 to sign up for one of the dates. We will offer the sessions one Wednesday evening a month and one Thursday evening a month (please see schedule below). We look forward to meeting you!

If you are a family with older children looking to transfer into the practice, we are happy to speak to you by phone. Please call the office to set up a phone call with our nurse manager.

PRENATAL APPT SCHEDULE: April 16, May 1, May 21, June 12, June 26, July 9, July 23, August 6, August 21

Infant Formula Safety

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At RPA we are aware of the recent Consumer Report regarding levels of lead, arsenic and other environmental contaminants in a selection of infant formulas. As experts review the findings of this report, we recommends no change to your infant's formula at this time. If your doctor or NP has recommended a formula based on your child's health needs, it is important to continue using that formula. Changing formulas may impact your child's health.

Currently, no infant formulas have been recalled. Additionally, Boston Children’s Hospital recommends only utilizing infant formulas that have been FDA reviewed.

If you have a clinical question regarding your child's prescribed formula, please reach out to us.