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COVID-19 Vaccine

Tips for Managing Short-Dated COVID-19 Vaccine Inventory

Tips for Managing Short-Dated COVID-19 Vaccine Inventory

COVID-19 vaccine shipped by McKesson in the following months will be short-dated, meaning the manufacturer expiration dates will be shorter than usual.  

McKesson will continue distributing COVID-19 doses until the vaccines are within 30 days of expiry.  

Here are some tips for managing short-dated COVID-19 vaccine inventory:

  • Order smaller quantities of vaccines more frequently while maintaining a 3–4 week vaccine supply.  
  • Make note vaccine expiration dates when receiving shipments and routinely check expiration dates when completing monthly reconciliations.  
  • Rotate short-dated vaccines to the front of the inventory and use them first.
  • Conduct outreach to Bridge Access Program and Vaccines for Children (VFC) eligible patients and schedule them to get vaccinated before doses expire. 

Have questions? Email us at vaccines@phila.gov.

COVID-19 Vaccine Returns

COVID-19 Vaccine Returns

Unopened vaccines should be returned when:

  •  The manufacturer expiration date has passed.
  •  The vaccines are no longer viable due to out-of-range temperatures.
  •  The vaccine has passed its beyond-use-date (BUD).

When returning COVID-19 vaccines that have passed their beyond-use-date,
remember to select Other as the return reason and include “Past BUD [insert the
BUD date]” in the comments section.*

Process a return for expired or non-viable vaccines in PhilaVax. Use this guide to assist you in the return process.

*New BUD labels are available for order. View this recent advisory for the ordering page and BUD label instructions.  

Reminders

When to waste vaccine:

  • Opened non-viable vaccines should be wasted out of inventory in
    PhilaVax. Use this guide to assist you in the wastage process.
  • Wasted vaccines include:
    • Open multi-dose vials where not all doses have been administered.
    • Broken vials/syringes.
    • Vaccine drawn up into a syringe but not administered.

Nirsevimab (Beyfortus) and COVID-19 Updates

Nirsevimab (Beyfortus) and COVID-19 Updates

Nirsevimab

Due to high demand and limited supply cited by the CDC, nirsevimab (Beyfortus) ordering through VFC has been put on hold as of October 17, 2023. The CDC is working with Sanofi to secure a supply of this immunization within the next 2 – 3 weeks. 

We will provide an update when nirsevimab becomes available for ordering. Please continue to immunize eligible children with your current supply.

COVID-19

For children under 5, access to COVID-19 vaccine is currently limited as most pharmacies are not vaccinating this age group. As a provider enrolled in the Vaccines For Children (VFC) program, here’s how to ensure these kids get the vaccine they need:

  • Order COVID-19 vaccine through the VFC program
  • Borrow VFC doses of COVID-19 vaccine to immunize your privately and CHIP insured patients while you wait for COVID-19 supply from the manufacturers*

*To request a borrowing form and learn more about the guidelines of this limited-time option, contact our VFC coordinator at victor.obeck@phila.gov. We highly encourage continuing to offer COVID-19 vaccine at every opportunity. 

What does commercialization mean for VFC providers?

The Department of Public Health’s federal COVID-19 program has formally ended. COVID-19 vaccines are now part of the routine immunization schedule.

With the exception of certain specialty providers, all Vaccines for Children (VFC) providers are required to stock COVID-19 vaccine inventory for both privately/CHIP insured patients and VFC eligible patients.

Learn more in this blog post that consolidates recent COVID-19 vaccine updates and lists available COVID-19 products.

Resources

Nirsevimab:

Recommendations and ordering guidance
MMWR
FDA page
Package insert
Immunization Information Statement (use this instead of VIS!)
Product and ordering information (AAP)

COVID-19:

Pfizer 2023-24 COVID-19 Vaccine

Comirnaty 12+

2023-24 COVID Vaccine 5 yrs – 11 yrs

2023-24 COVID Vaccine 6 mo – 4 yrs

Moderna 2023-24 COVID-19 Vaccine

Spikevax 12+

2023-24 COVID Vaccine 6 mo – 11 yrs

Have other questions about nirsevimab, COVID-19, or VFC? Contact our VFC coordinator at victor.obeck@phila.gov.

2023-2024 Novavax Now Available to Order

2023-2024 Novavax Now Available to Order

Novavax COVID-19 vaccine, adjuvanted (2023-2024 formula) is now available to order. 2023-2024Novavax is authorized for individuals 12 years and older. 

This product package contains two multi dose vials each containing five doses. The NDC for this product is NDC # 80631-0105-02. 

It can be ordered through PhilaVax following the same steps used to order all other 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine products.  Vaccines for Children (VFC) and Bridge Access Program (BAP) providers can order Novavax for eligible patients. 

As a reminder, your practice can now: 

1) Order COVID-19 vaccine through the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program

2) Order COVID-19 vaccine for privately insured adults, and 

3) Enroll in the Bridge Access Program (BAP) to procure COVID-19 vaccine for uninsured or underinsured adults. BAP vaccines can only be used for uninsured and underinsured patients aged 18 and up. 

When possible, VFC providers should vaccinate eligible 18-year-olds with VFC vaccine before using BAP vaccine. 

This new blog post highlights important changes in this new period of COVID-19 vaccination, including:

  • The Department of Public Health’s COVID-19 program has formally ended.
  • Bivalent COVID-19 vaccines are no longer authorized for use.
  • The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) approved the use of updated (monovalent) COVID-19 vaccines.
  • Providers can order the updated COVID-19 vaccine for privately insured patients by directly contacting the manufacturers for each product (see below for more information). 
  • With the exception of certain specialty providers, all Vaccines for Children (VFC) providers are required to stock COVID-19 vaccine inventory for both privately/CHIP insured patients and VFC eligible patients.  
  • Philadelphia vaccine providers are encouraged to enroll in the Bridge Access Program to provide updated COVID-19 vaccines for uninsured or underinsured adults 18 years and older. 
Read the blog post!

If you have any questions about ordering COVID-19 vaccine, contact dphproviderhelp@phila.gov. 

COVID-19 Vaccine Update

COVID-19 Vaccine Update

As a reminder, the last day to order COVID-19 vaccine was Thursday 8/3. Providers who continue to have COVID-19 vaccine inventory should continue to adhere to the requirements outlined in the Provider Agreement. Read on for specific guidance regarding delivery and reporting.

Delivery

After 8/15, PDPH will no longer be delivering COVID-19 vaccine to providers. 

If you have any questions or your site is at risk of running out of COVID-19 vaccine, please contact the COVID-19 Logistics and Distribution Manager at nyandra.mcfadden@phila.gov.

Reporting

COVID-19 providers who continue to have PDPH-supplied COVID-19 vaccine are required to continue reporting all data and appropriately monitoring and storing vaccine. This includes:

  • Reporting inventory in Vaccine Finder
  • Monitoring and storing COVID-19 vaccine in approved storage units
  • Documenting temperature readings on paper logs
  • Reporting temperature readings every 28 days
  • Completing wastage reports in PhilaVax 

All data should be reported to the immunization information system (IIS), PhilaVax, no less than 72 hours after administration. If you observe a temperature excursion, contact TempCheck@phila.gov immediately.

Bridge Access Program

COVID-19 vaccine providers interested in enrolling in the Bridge Access Program to continue offering COVID-19 vaccine to uninsured or underinsured adults after commercialization should continue monitoring their email for more information on the program.

Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine Shelf-Life Extension

Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine Shelf-Life Extension

The FDA has approved Moderna’s request for a 3-month shelf-life extension (SLE) of all Moderna COVID-19 vaccines for under 6 years old. The relevant lot numbers are listed in the table below. 

Moderna has updated their web-based Vial Expiration Checker tool to reflect the extension of the four lot numbers below. Only the lot numbers below are included in this SLE approval. 

We encourage you to record these updates for management of your inventory and continue weekly monitoring of all COVID-19 vaccine expiration dates using the manufacturers’ online expiry checking tools:   

Moderna Vial Expiration Checker

Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine Expiry Checker 

Novavax Expiry Date Checker 

Updated Moderna Expiration

Updated Moderna Expiration

All orders for COVID-19 vaccine must be placed by this Thursday, August 3.

As a reminder, this Thursday, August 3 is the last day to order COVID-19 vaccine. Sites should order enough vaccine to last through August and September. Moderna vaccine may arrive short dated, as an extension on the expiry date is expected. 

Be on the lookout for an email with the updated expiration dates. You can also check Moderna’s online expiry tool below.

Moderna Expiry Tool

Updated COVID-19 Delivery Schedule

Updated COVID-19 Delivery Schedule

With commercialization of COVID-19 nearing, PDPH will be reducing our capacity to deliver partial orders of COVID-19, placed through the Monday.com order form below. In June, we will deliver orders the week of the 12th and the week of the 19th. Any orders placed later in June will not be delivered until July. In July and August, we will deliver partial orders during the 3rd full week of the month. Please see the below ordering schedule for reference.

Partial Order Form

As we move forward with this new delivery schedule, sites will need to order slightly more vaccine to have enough supply to last them up to a month between orders.

If you have questions regarding COVID-19 deliveries, please email covidproviders@phila.gov.

Vaccine Temperature Monitoring: New Paper Temperature Logs Available

Vaccine Temperature Monitoring: New Paper Temperature Logs Available

To ensure that the vaccine at your site is viable when administered to patients, consistent temperature monitoring is an important part of participating in the program. Our program requires sites to maintain active and passive monitoring. The passive monitoring is recorded by the Digital Date Logger (DDL) and reported to our program regularly. The active monitoring is recorded on the paper temperature logs.

Please download and review the updated documents below:
Fridge Temperature Log (Celsius)
Fridge Temperature Log (Fahrenheit)
Freezer Temperature Log (Celsius)
Freezer Temperature Log (Fahrenheit)

Please use the new logs and review the instructions to make sure you are documenting temperatures correctly.

Paper temperature logs are a requirement for the VFC, VFAAR, and COVID-19 programs and must be kept on file for at least 3 years.

Novavax 10 Dose Vials Unavailable to Order After 4/5/2023

Novavax 10 Dose Vials Unavailable to Order After 4/5/2023

April 5 will be the last date to order 10 dose vials of Novavax. These doses will be short-dated, with an expiration date of 4/30/23. After 4/30, please discard all Novavax doses.
To maintain a non-mRNA vaccine option on site, 5 dose vials of Novavax will be available to order starting the week of 4/10/23, with a minimum ordering quantity of 100 doses.