Issue Number 304            April 1, 2002

CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE

  1. Questions about vaccine shortages? CDC and IAC websites offer answers
  2. Revisions: Three important IAC print pieces are newly modified
  3. States add new vaccination requirements for children: Three for varicella and one for hepatitis A
  4. Happy first anniversary to the "hepprograms" website!
  5. CDC publishes article on successes and challenges in year 2001 effort to eradicate poliomyelitis worldwide
  6. VIS software combines audio and text in four languages

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April 1, 2002
QUESTIONS ABOUT VACCINE SHORTAGES? CDC AND IAC WEBSITES OFFER ANSWERS

Shortages persist for five important vaccines: DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis), Td (tetanus and diphtheria), MMR (measles-mumps-rubella), varicella (chickenpox), and PCV7 (pneumococcal conjugate). Although shortage information and instructions come piecemeal from various sources, it's hard to keep up.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has created a web page titled "Current Vaccine Shortages" that will be updated weekly. This page answers such basic questions as: Which vaccines are currently in shortage? Why are there shortages? What should be done in the meantime? Who can I contact to answer my questions?

General questions can be answered by the CDC immunization hotline at (800) 232-2522.

The Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) also has posted a related web page on its site. The "Vaccine Shortage Information" page provides references and links to articles and recommendations on shortages in general and specific vaccine shortages. It also lists phone numbers of vaccine companies to call for the most current information.

To see CDC's Current Vaccine Shortages web page, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/nip/news/shortages

To see IAC's Vaccine Shortage Information web page, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/vacshortage
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April 1, 2002
REVISIONS: THREE IMPORTANT IAC PRINT PIECES ARE NEWLY MODIFIED

The Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) has revised one screening questionnaire, one patient education piece, and the "Summary of Rules for Childhood Immunization."

"Do I Need Any Vaccinations Today?" (a self-screening questionnaire for use by adult patients) has been changed to further clarify indications for pneumococcal polysaccharide, Haemophilus influenzae type b, and meningococcal vaccination and to reflect the discontinuation of Lyme disease vaccine. Now this questionnaire is an even better adult vaccination screening and assessment tool.

"What Would Happen If We Stopped Vaccinations?" now shows the number of reported cases of vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs) in the year 2000 and the percent decrease for each disease since its maximum-reported-case year. This up-to-date chart makes the case for vaccination in very simple visual form.

On the "Summary of Rules for Childhood Immunization" we have included the birth dose of hepatitis B recommendation and removed the guidelines on the discontinued Lyme disease vaccine.

To obtain a copy of "Do I Need Any Vaccinations Today?", go to:
PDF: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/4036need.pdf
HTML: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/4036need.htm

To obtain a copy of "What Would Happen If We Stopped Vaccinations?", go to:
PDF: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/4037stop.pdf
HTML: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/4037stop.htm

To obtain a copy of "Summary of Rules for Childhood Immunization," go to:
PDF: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/rules1.pdf
HTML: http://www.immunize.org/nslt.d/n17/rules1.htm
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April 1, 2002
STATES ADD NEW VACCINATION REQUIREMENTS FOR CHILDREN: THREE FOR VARICELLA AND ONE FOR HEPATITIS A

The states of North Carolina, Tennessee, and Utah have all enacted a requirement for varicella vaccination or immunity before kindergarten entrance. In Tennessee and Utah, the effective date is July 1, 2002. In North Carolina, the effective date was today, April 1, 2002 for children 12-19 months of age (born on or after April 1, 2001), a requirement that may be enforced for these children upon daycare  entrance or, at the latest, elementary-school entrance beginning in the year 2006.

Utah has also passed a hepatitis A vaccination requirement for entering kindergartners effective this July.

To see IAC's Varicella Mandates web page, newly updated to reflect these new requirements, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/laws/varicel.htm

IAC tracks this and other state-by-state mandates regarding immunization on our website at:
http://www.immunize.org/laws/

We plan to add a Hepatitis A Mandates web page in the summer.

Please be sure to let us know of any new immunization laws in your state. Although we follow state activities, we also rely on readers to keep us informed. Send emails with your updates to admin@immunize.org
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April 1, 2002
HAPPY FIRST ANNIVERSARY TO THE "HEPPROGRAMS" WEBSITE!

On March 30, 2001, the Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) launched a new website for and about hepatitis prevention programs as part of a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Viral Hepatitis. This site is an online forum for health and social service professionals to share information about ways to successfully prevent viral hepatitis in populations at risk, a kind of "virtual poster session." As of this past February, the site was hosting an average of 192 visitors per day.

The "hepprograms" website highlights programs in the following categories: programs for men who have sex with men, STD clinics, family planning clinics, drug treatment and needle exchange programs, juvenile and adult corrections facilities, school-based programs for adolescents, programs for Asian Pacific Islander Americans, and programs for other populations at risk.

When it started, this site featured 32 programs in 7 categories. Just one year later, the number of featured programs has more than doubled--you can now read about 65 programs on the site. Also included are 78 links to recommendations and articles and 46 links to related organizations.

The following six programs were recently added to the site:

Harold & Esther Chester Immunology Center, Miriam Hospital
http://www.hepprograms.org/adult/adult6.asp

B-Wise Project, NICOS Chinese Health Coalition
http://www.hepprograms.org/apia/apia4.asp

Indiana Women's Prison Hepatitis and Childhood Immunization Education Program
http://www.hepprograms.org/adult/adult7.asp

Washington State Asian Pacific Islander Task Force: Focus on Hepatitis B Immunization
http://www.hepprograms.org/apia/apia3.asp

Minnesota Viral Hepatitis Integration Project
http://www.hepprograms.org/drug/drug8.asp

The Mommy Van
http://www.hepprograms.org/apia/apia5.asp

To visit the "Hepatitis Prevention Programs" website's home page, go to: http://www.hepprograms.org

We are always looking for new programs to add to the site! If you have information you would like to share with your colleagues, go to the "Tell us about your program" page at http://www.hepprograms.org/tellus.htm You can also email us at evaluation@immunize.org

Thanks for all your help in making this a happy first anniversary for IAC's "Hepatitis Prevention Programs" website!
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April 1, 2002
CDC PUBLISHES ARTICLE ON SUCCESSES AND CHALLENGES IN YEAR 2001 EFFORT TO ERADICATE POLIOMYELITIS WORLDWIDE

On March 29, 2002, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published "Progress Toward Global Eradication of Poliomyelitis, 2001" in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).

The article states that from 1988 through 2001, "the number of countries where polio is endemic decreased from 125 to 10, and the number of reported polio cases decreased by >99% from an estimated 350,000 to <1,000. . . . Current challenges to global polio eradication efforts include ongoing intense transmission in northern India, continued importations of wild poliovirus into polio-free areas, and the detection of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus (cVDPV)."

To obtain the complete text of the article online, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5112a1.htm

To obtain a camera-ready (PDF format) copy of this issue of MMWR, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5112.pdf

HOW TO OBTAIN A FREE ELECTRONIC SUBSCRIPTION TO THE MMWR:
To obtain a free electronic subscription to the "Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report" (MMWR), visit CDC's MMWR website at: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr Select "Free MMWR Subscription" from the menu at the left of the screen. Once you have submitted the required information, weekly issues of the MMWR and all new ACIP statements (published as MMWR's "Recommendations and Reports") will arrive automatically by email.
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March 25, 2002
VIS SOFTWARE COMBINES AUDIO AND TEXT IN FOUR LANGUAGES

Healthway Software offers CD-ROM versions of current Vaccine Information Statements (VISs) in English, Spanish, Bosnian, and Vietnamese. These software VISs use both audio narration and on-screen text to provide information contained in VISs produced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). These easy-to-use VISs offer an alternative way to present essential vaccine information to patients, especially those for whom English is a second language and English-speakers who do not read.

The cost of the "Vaccine Information" software is $25 per language, with a 10% handling fee.

Some of the Healthway Software VIS programs are available for free on the website of Healthy Communities Without Borders (HCWB), a community project of Cass County, Wisconsin, and Clay County, Minnesota. Currently available are Hepatitis A in English, Bosnian, Spanish, and Vietnamese; and influenza, meningococcal, and pneumococcal polysaccharide in English.

To view the Healthway Software website, go to:
http://www.healthwaysoftware.com/index.htm

To order Healthway Software VIS software on CD-ROM, go to:
http://www.healthwaysoftware.com/Order.htm

To view the HCWB immunization information web page, go to:
http://www.hcwb.org/healthresources/immunization/immunization.htm

For more information, contact Healthway Software by email at contact@healthwaysoftware.com

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Editorial Information

  • Editor-in-Chief
    Kelly L. Moore, MD, MPH
  • Managing Editor
    John D. Grabenstein, RPh, PhD
  • Associate Editor
    Sharon G. Humiston, MD, MPH
  • Writer/Publication Coordinator
    Taryn Chapman, MS
    Courtnay Londo, MA
  • Style and Copy Editor
    Marian Deegan, JD
  • Web Edition Managers
    Arkady Shakhnovich
    Jermaine Royes
  • Contributing Writer
    Laurel H. Wood, MPA
  • Technical Reviewer
    Kayla Ohlde

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