# 3609
Today the CDC has published a long list of questions and answers about this fall’s upcoming pandemic vaccination program.
Rather than reprint the entire document, I’ll refer my readers to the CDC vaccination information page, but I will post a few excerpts.
There are roughly 3 dozen Q&As in the complete document. By all means follow the link to read them all in their entirety.
CDC Novel H1N1 Vaccination Planning Q&A
August 10, 2009, 11:45 AM ET
Vaccine Distribution
Q. When will the decision to administer vaccine be made?
A. For planning purposes, it should be assumed that vaccine will be administered beginning in the fall.
Q. When will vaccine shipping begin?
A. Planners should assume shipping of vaccine will begin mid-October, although there is a possibility that some vaccine will be available for shipping starting late September.
Q. How much vaccine can be expected to be available for shipping when shipping begins?
A. Planners should use the following scenarios: In the first scenario, approximately 120 million doses will be released beginning around mid-October over a 4 week period, followed by approximately 20 million doses per week (or 80 million doses per month) thereafter. In the second one, up to 20 million doses of vaccine will be released beginning late September, followed by approximately 20 million doses per week (or 80 million doses per month) thereafter.
Q. Will vaccine be in multi-dose vials?
A. The majority of vaccine will be in multi-dose vials, the remainder in single dose vials or nasal sprayers. The aim is to have enough vaccine in single dose vials (i.e. preservative free) for young children and pregnant women.Vaccine Allocation
Q. How will vaccine be allocated among project areas (the CDC PHEP grantees)?
A. Vaccine will be allocated to each project area in proportion to its population (pro rata).Vaccine Administration
Q. Will two doses of vaccine be required?
A. This will not be known until the late summer- early fall, once clinical trials are completed. For planning purposes, planners should assume that two doses will be needed.
Q. What will be the recommended interval between the first and second dose?
A. This will not be known until clinical trials are complete. For planning purposes, planners should assume 21-28 days between the first and second vaccination.
Q. How much Thimerosal-free vaccine will be available?
A. It is anticipated that enough thimerosal-free vaccine in pre-loaded syringes will be available for young children and pregnant women.
Q. Will there be federal requirements to recall persons for their second dose, if a second dose is needed?
A. There will be no federal requirement to send out recall notices. Providing information on second dose at the time of the first dose, as well as using the media to disseminate this message will be the primary means of educating persons about who needs a second dose administered.
Q. Will it be necessary for the first and second dose to be the same product?
A. Ideally, first and second doses would be from the same product. However, practical considerations make this difficult to implement. Planners should assume they will be interchangeable.
Q. Can seasonal vaccine and novel H1N1 vaccine be administered at the same time?
A. Clinical trials are exploring this question. It is anticipated that seasonal vaccine and novel H1N1 vaccines may be administered together.
Q. Will vaccine be adjuvanted?
A. It is unlikely H1N1 vaccine will be adjuvanted. Definitive information will be available once clinical trial data are available.Pneumococcal vaccination:
Q. Are there any changes in recommendations for pneumococcal vaccines?
A. The ACIP recommends that persons recommended for pneumococcal vaccine receive it in light of the potential for increased risk of pneumococcal disease associated with influenza. There are at present no recommendations to give pneumococcal vaccine to groups for whom it is not currently recommended. ACIP will revisit this question over the summer as epidemiologic data from the Southern hemisphere influenza season and from the U.S. become available.
