Several health-related bills are still pending during the final week of the 2013 General Assembly.

Senate Bill 85 would allow pharmacists, who can already give flu shots, to administer other adult vaccinations, such as those for whooping cough, shingles and pneumococcus.

In a new GHN Commentary, Dr. Daniel S. Blumenthal of Morehouse School of Medicine argues for the passage of the immunization legislation.

“Adults lag far behind the kids in getting the shots that they need,’’ he writes. Adult vaccination rates, he adds, “are lower among African-Americans and Hispanics than among whites.’’

Here is a link to his Commentary.

Georgia Health News welcomes Commentary submissions. If you would like to propose a Commentary piece for Georgia Health News, please email Andy Miller, editor of GHN, at amiller@georgiahealthnews.com