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Minnesota Department of Health

Dec. 2, 2021

Good afternoon,

Here are the COVID-19 vaccine provider updates for Nov. 24 to Dec. 2, 2021.

• CDC expands COVID-19 booster recommendations
• MDH provider material updates
• Updated booster forecaster in MIIC
• Recent studies on COVID-19 and pregnancy
• Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine trainings
• COVID-19 vaccine ordering updates

CDC expands COVID-19 booster recommendations

On Nov. 29, 2021, CDC recommended that all people 18 years and older should get a booster dose of COVID-19 vaccine. There is no longer a need to determine if a person is in a risk group; give them a booster if it has been 6 months since completing the mRNA (Pfizer or Moderna) series, or 2 months since receiving the Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) initial dose. Any of the products can be given without regard to what product a person originally received.

Prioritize your capacity to serve groups that would most benefit from a booster dose. This includes people 50 years and older, those living in long-term care facilities, and people that received the Janssen vaccine.

Refer to CDC’s media statement: CDC Expands COVID-19 Booster Recommendations and the Interim Clinical Considerations for Use of COVID-19 Vaccines for details.

MDH provider material updates

Appendices A-C have been updated with the latest booster dose recommendations in the “Vaccine recommendations” section for each appendix. Find them at COVID-19 Vaccine Providers.

Updated booster forecaster in MIIC

In accordance with the booster recommendation change described above, MIIC now forecasts a booster dose for clients age 18 years and older who have received two doses of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine (Comirnaty/Pfizer or Spikevax/Moderna). Of note, the forecaster was updated in October 2021 to forecast a booster for Janssen vaccine recipients, so MIIC now forecasts a booster for all fully vaccinated people 18 years and older. The recommended date for the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines will be six months after the date of the second dose. If you have any questions regarding the forecaster in MIIC, please contact the MIIC Help Desk at health.miichelp@state.mn.us.

Recent studies on COVID-19 and pregnancy

Continue to reach out to those who are pregnant, recently pregnant, trying to become pregnant, or might become pregnant in the future to recommend and provide COVID-19 vaccines and boosters. Recent studies emphasize the known risks of COVID-19 illness during pregnancy, including increased risk associated with the spread of the Delta variant. Read more in the following articles:

• CDC MMWR: COVID-19–Associated Deaths After SARS-CoV-2 Infection During Pregnancy — Mississippi, March 1, 2020–October 6, 2021
• CDC MMWR: Risk for Stillbirth Among Women With and Without COVID-19 at Delivery Hospitalization — United States, March 2020–September 2021
• Research Square: COVID-19 Severity among Women of Reproductive Age with Symptomatic Laboratory-Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 by Pregnancy Status – United States, Jan 1, 2020 – Sep 30, 2021

Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine trainings

Pfizer U.S. Medical Affairs is hosting “Medical Updates” for its COVID-19 vaccines with a special focus on the vaccine for 5- to 11-year-olds. Training topics for both vaccines (vaccine for 5- to 11-year-olds and 12 years and older) include FDA indication & authorization, CDC/ACIP recommendations, packaging/presentation, storage and handling, and a question and answer session.

Each session will be unique and will reflect any new information or changes that emerge. To access current and future training sessions, please visit Pfizer: Medical Updates & Immunization Site Training for All Healthcare Providers led by Pfizer Vaccines US Medical Affairs.

COVID-19 vaccine ordering updates

COVID-19 vaccine ordering for 5- to 11-year-olds

The next ordering event for COVID-19 vaccine for children age 5-11 years (orange cap) will open on Friday, Dec. 3, and close at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 6. Orders will deliver between Tuesday, Dec. 14 and Thursday, Dec. 16. We expect the next Pfizer 5- to 11-year-old vaccine event to open later in the month with deliveries towards the end of December. More information will be provided as soon as it becomes available to us.

COVID-19 vaccine ordering for people 12 years and older

We continue to fulfill orders of vaccine for people 12 years an older on a rolling basis.

Reminders for ordering

• Please check your inventory before placing requests for additional doses. Our data show there is a lot of inventory in the field.
• We will not automatically ship second doses. Sites are responsible for anticipating their second dose inventory needs and ordering accordingly.
• Pharmacies enrolled in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program (FRPP) should request doses via their CDC FRPP contacts.

Reporting vaccine wastage

You must report vaccine wastage in MIIC. There are no consequences or punishment for reporting wasted vaccine. Reporting wastage is necessary to keep track of inventory and supply.

Wastage that should be reported:

• Vials that expired before you could use them. Either by the manufacturer’s expiration or beyond-use date in the fridge.
• Doses that remained in the vial and not used before the time limit.
• Fewer doses drawn up than the maximum doses per vial. For example: if you can only get five doses from a Pfizer vial, report one dose as wasted.
• For instructions on reporting wasted (nonviable) COVID-19 vaccine in MIIC, please review Reporting Nonviable COVID-19 Vaccine to MIIC. You are allowed to report weekly and for several sites at one time.

We encourage any sites with excess vaccine inventory to report it using our Smartsheet tool, COVID-19 Vaccine Available for Redistribution, to facilitate redistribution and help avoid vaccine waste.

Find previous bulletins at COVID-19 Vaccine Provider Updates.

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