Weekly Vaccine Digest 7/14

Weekly Vaccine Digest 7/14 Los Angeles County Department of Public Health

Dear Colleagues and Partners,  

Below are the LACDPH weekly vaccine administration and order updates, upcoming webinars, and newsworthy events. Attached to this email you will find a pdf version of this digest and the links shared during today’s CDPH Office Hours. To view the CDPH recording please visit eziz.org/covid/education.

If you received this email and would like to be added to our listserv, please contact our COVID-19 Provider Vaccine Call Center at covidvaccinereq@ph.lacounty.gov

Table of Contents ·        Page 1-2: Welcome, Order and Administration Reminders, Sunsetting of US Government COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution ·        Page 2-3: HHS Bridge Program, COVID-19 Vaccines through CA BAP ·        Page 4-5: Hot Topic Q&A, LACDPH & CDPH Provider Office Hours Link

Order and Administration Reminders

• REMINDER: Please place all orders in myCAvax by the Monday 7/17/23 5pm deadline.
• REMINDER: Please report all COVID-19 doses administered within 24 hours to your medical record system and to CAIR as soon as practicable and no later than 72 hours.
• NOTE: CDPH is sending out a survey to VFC providers on their brand preference of COVID vaccines for the Fall.
• REMINDER: Record Vaccine Waste in myCAvax. Job aid can be found here.

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COVID-19 Vaccine: Commercialized Vaccine Availability Post U.S. COVID-19 Vaccine Program Sunsetting

Commercialization definition: Commercialization is the transition of COVID-19 medical countermeasures, including vaccines, treatments, and test kits previously purchased by the U.S. Government (USG), to established pathways of procurement (commercial market), distribution, and payment by both public and private payers.

COVID-19 Vaccine Transition to Commercialization

• Anticipated timeline: Early Fall 2023
• Vaccine availability for pediatric and adult populations to follow current models for non-COVID-19 vaccines
  • Pediatric populations:
    • Vaccines will be made available through the Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program for eligible children under 19 years of age.
    • Vaccines for privately insured patients will be purchased following similar established mechanisms in healthcare for non-COVID-19 vaccines.
  • Adult populations:
    • Anticipate limited vaccine supply will be made available through the Bridge Access Program (BAP) for uninsured/under insured adults.
    • Vaccines for insured adults will be private supply, obtained via established processes, like non-COVID vaccines.
    • For most private insurance plans, vaccines recommended for routine use by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), including COVID-19 vaccines, will be fully covered without a co-pay thanks to the Affordable Care Act.
    • For Medicare Part B beneficiaries, COVID-19 vaccinations are covered without cost sharing, and this will continue.
    • For Medicare Part D/equivalent plans, ACIP-recommended vaccines will be fully covered at no cost, because of the Inflation Reduction Act.
    • Medi-Cal- anticipate will cover COVID-19 vaccines
• Standard orders for current formulations will close Thursday, August 3, 2023. Providers should order sufficient product to last until the new formulation is available this fall.
• Small orders will continue to be available until commercialization begins.
• There will be the opportunity to submit additional standard orders, if needed (process to be determined and will be communicated prior to August). Most providers need to begin preparing to order vaccine through the commercial market.
• A small number of providers that routinely serve uninsured adult patients will be eligible for the Bridge Access Program (BAP).

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HHS Bridge Access Program

• The purpose of this program is to help maintain access to COVID-19 care (vaccines and therapeutics) for uninsured adults, 19 years of age and older, through existing public health infrastructure, HRSA-supported health centers (i.e., Health Centers), and participating pharmacies, via two major components:
  • Provide support for the existing public sector vaccine safety net, implemented and maintained by state immunization programs, Local Health Departments, and HRSA supported health centers.
  • Create a funded partnership with pharmacy chains that will enable them to continue offering free COVID-19 vaccinations and treatments.
  • A link to more program information can be found here.
• HHS Bridge Access Program: Existing Public Health Infrastructure Component (Preliminary Details)
  • CDC will negotiate federal contracts with manufacturers and purchase COVID-19 vaccines made available to states for ordering
  • Total doses available to each state are still TBD
  • Vaccines will be purchased with 317 Funds and must be used exclusively for vaccinating uninsured/under-insured adults
  • Program participation requirements will be guided by the 317 Program
  • Details on how the program will be implemented this fall are still forthcoming.
    • Likely Vaccine Ordering and Provider Management will continue to be supported by myCAvax systems and COVID teams
• HHS Bridge Access Program: Pharmacies
  • The HHS Bridge Access Program is “a novel, funded partnership with pharmacy chains”:
    • Leverage the public commitments by drug manufacturers to provide vaccines and treatments free-of-charge for the uninsured
    • COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers have committed to provide vaccines at no cost for the uninsured
    • Program will provide a per-dose payment to pharmacies
    • HHS expects that manufacturers ensure vaccines will be made readily available directly to pharmacies
      • Manufacturers’ patient assistance programs will provide appropriate reimbursement or replacement for COVID-19 vaccines

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COVID-19 Vaccines Addition to VFC Program

• COVID-19 vaccine is already a routinely recommended ACIP vaccine, and has been officially voted into the VFCProgram
• It is expected that ordering and availability for this vaccine, via routine VFC Program ordering processes, will occur after the sunset of the COVID-19 Program (Fall 2023)
• It is likely MyVFCVaccines will be the system used to support vaccine ordering and distribution.
  • Still have ~1/3 of VFC providers that have not enrolled in the COVID-19 program, eliminating need to enroll sites
  • COVID-19 vaccines can quickly be added to the VFC formulary, and have one system for ordering
  • Will have visibility into COVID-19 Vaccine Ordering as ordered quantities for other routine vaccines are reviewed
• Process for adding COVID-19 vaccines will follow tasks and actions for the addition of a new VFC Vaccine, including:
  • Program Letter and provider communications
  • MyVFCVaccines modification to add a new vaccine
  • Ordering details still TBD- Seasonal as Flu vaccines or Routine as PCV?
  • CDC will work with states to determine Total supply need o CDC COVID- Prebooks → Provider COVID-19 Vaccine Prebook?
  • Staff training (Product information, Compliance, etc.)
• For providers that would like to enroll in the VFC Program you can do so at https://eziz.org/vfc/.

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Hot Topic Questions & Answers

Question: Will we still need to provide CDC cards showing proof of immunization or will it become like other vaccines where documentation is shown solely through CAIR?

Answer: CHDP’s impression is that it will be like other vaccines and CDC cards will no longer be provided or required. Patients can use the Digital Vaccine Record Portal https://myvaccinerecord.cdph.ca.gov/ to look up their record.

Question: Does the VFC COVID-19 vaccine survey consider the age range along with brand preference?

Answer: On the VFC survey that will be sent later this morning, there are questions regarding COVID-19 brand preference and also a question on the age ranges of patients the clinic plans on vaccinating.

Question: How will we go about reporting covid vaccine inventory usage in VFC, if we order from VFC and still have stock from HRSA? Will we need to report in two different systems and label them separately?

Answer: The expectation is that all of the current formulation will be deauthorized and final reporting will be done prior to the new formulation being available through VFC.

Question: Will "American Indian or Alaskan Native" as a group be include in the Bridge Access Program?

Answer: This is only an eligibility category for VFC, it is not a category for adult patients. For the Bridge Access Program and VFA only uninsured and under-insured adults are eligible.

Question: As we expand the access to COVID-19 vaccines and transition to commercialization, do we need submit a redistribution request for VFC and BAP vaccines?

Answer: Redistribution is not allowed in our routine programs (VFC and VFA); it was only an exception for COVID. More guidance will be coming as we work out all of the details but expect for vaccines to be ordered and delivered directly to the sites. VFC and BAP have small minimum orders so redistribution should not be needed.

Question: Can I enroll in the California Vaccines for Adults Program (VFA)?

Answer: No, the VFA program is not currently accepting applications for enrollment at this time. A notification will be given to eligible providers when program enrollment re-opens. Please check back periodically for updates.

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LACDPH & CDPH Provider Office Hours Link

LA County Department of Public Health Provider Office Hours Information

• Every other Wednesday from 9am-10am - Next meeting: 07/19/23
  • NOTE: Effective 2/01/23 the Office Hours will be held on a biweekly basis
• This meeting has been combined with the Mpox Office Hours call. Part one of the meeting will focus on COVID-19 issues while the second part will address Mpox vaccine issues.
• MS Teams meeting link below; please create a recurring calendar invite with this link.
• To request meeting slides, please email covidvaccinereq@ph.lacounty.gov

Microsoft Teams meeting

Join on your computer or mobile app

Click here to join the meeting

Or call in (audio only)

+1 323-776-6996,,350547595#   United States, Los Angeles

Phone Conference ID: 350 547 595#

California Department of Public Health Provider Office Hours Registration Link

• Every Friday from 9am-10:30am.
• Complete one-time registration here.
• Meeting recordings and slides can be found here.

Providers should add staff names to the Provider Listserv to receive weekly emails and updates. To be added, please email blanca.corona@cdph.ca.gov

• CDPH PROVIDER OH 7_14_23 LINKS.pdf
• Weekly Vaccine Digest 07.14.23_v3.pdf