COVID-19 Vaccine Provider Weekly Updates

Minnesota Department of Health sent this bulletin at 12/12/2022 11:52 AM CST
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COVID-19 Vaccine Provider Weekly Updates

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Minnesota Department of Health

December 12, 2022

 

CDC recommends updated bivalent COVID-19 vaccine for children 6 months of age and older

On Friday Dec. 9, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended the use of the updated (bivalent) Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines to include use in children 6 months of age and older.

Pfizer COVID-19 bivalent vaccine

  • Children 6 months through 4 years of age who have received two doses of the original (monovalent) three-dose primary series of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine and have not yet received the third dose of their primary series will now receive the updated (bivalent) Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine as the third dose in their primary series.
  • Children 6 months through 4 years of age who have already completed their three-dose primary series with the original (monovalent) Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine will not be eligible for a booster dose of an updated bivalent vaccine at this time.
  • With this authorization, the monovalent Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is no longer authorized for use as the third dose of the three-dose primary series in children 6 months through 4 years of age.

Moderna COVID-19 bivalent vaccine

  • Children age 6 months through 5 years are now eligible to receive a single booster of the updated (bivalent) Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at least two months after completing a primary series with the original (monovalent) Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.

Currently there are no recommendations for “mixing” vaccine products in younger children. Refer to the CDC: Clinical Guidance for COVID-19 Vaccination for more detailed information, especially about children who change age groups during their primary series.

For details on CDC’s recommendations and FDA’s authorization, refer to the following media statements: CDC Expands Updated COVID-19 Vaccines to Include Children Ages 6 Months through 5 Years and Coronavirus Update: FDA Authorizes Updated (Bivalent) COVID-19 Vaccines for Children Down to 6 Months of Age.

The FDA EUA fact sheets for health care providers and recipients and caregivers have been updated and can be found at Comirnaty and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine and Moderna COVID-19 Vaccines. CDC has also updated the Interim Clinical Considerations for Use of COVID-19 Vaccines. MDH is currently updating resources to reflect this change and can be found at COVID-19 Vaccine Providers. 

Bivalent vaccine trainings for 6 months through 5 years

Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine trainings now include information on the bivalent vaccine presentation for ages 6 months through 5 years. More information including links to attend educational sessions can be found at Pfizer: Medical Updates & Immunization Site Training for All Healthcare Providers led by Pfizer Vaccines US Medical Affairs and National Educational Webinars: Moderna Covid-19 Vaccine, Bivalent: Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for 6 months-5 years Age Group.

Moderna is also offering daily interactive office hours found at Regional Medical Affairs Office Hours: Moderna Covid-19 Vaccine, Bivalent: Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for 6 months-5 years Age Group.

COVID-19 vaccine winter holiday shipping schedules

Please take note of the holiday shipping schedules listed below for COVID-19 vaccine. Note that the shipping schedules vary between Pfizer and McKesson Specialty vaccines (Moderna, Novavax, J&J).

Pfizer:

  • There will be no deliveries Friday, Dec. 23 to Monday, Dec. 26.
  • Regular deliveries will temporarily resume between Tuesday, Dec. 27 to Thursday, Dec. 29.
  • There will be no deliveries Friday, Dec. 30 – Monday, Jan. 2.
  • Regular deliveries resume on Tuesday, Jan. 3.

McKesson Specialty (Moderna, Novavax, J&J):

  • There will be no deliveries Thursday, Dec. 22 to Monday, Dec. 26.
  • Regular deliveries will temporarily resume between Tuesday, Dec. 27 – Thursday, Dec. 29.
  • There will be no deliveries Friday, Dec. 30 – Tuesday, Jan. 3.
  • Regular deliveries resume Wednesday, Jan. 4.

Moderna and Pfizer shelf-life extensions

Moderna

Expiration dates of the following Moderna lots have been extended by three months: 013B22A, 052B22A, 064A22A, 060B22A, 061B22A, 083B22A, 068A22A, 063B22A, 059B22A, 063B22-2A, 074B22A, 071B22A, 072B22A, AR4504B, AR5186C, AR7204B, AR7205B, AR7479B, AR8365B.

All these lots are monovalent COVID-19 vaccine for primary use only. Please verify the expiration dates of your existing inventory using the Moderna Vial Expiration Checker: Moderna: Vial Expiration Checker.

Pfizer

Pfizer has received shelf-life extensions of all TRIS products (i.e., all mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, including both monovalent and bivalent vaccines). Expiration is now 18 months from the date of manufacture (stored ULT frozen).

Please use the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine Expiry tool to check expiration dates.

Tips for submitting nonviable forms in MIIC

Avoid submitting more than one nonviable form in the same day. Minimize the number of entries to make it easier for you to submit and for us to process.

  • We advise submitting weekly totals when possible. You can add up totals for each lot over multiple days regardless of the expiration/BUD (by use date).
  • You can submit one nonviable form for different NDCs AND for different lot numbers that have the same NDC. You will complete a new line on the form for each of the different lot numbers.
  • You can submit different nonviable reasons all in the same form (you don’t have to separate out expired vaccine from other nonviable reasons). Note that expired COVID vaccines do not get returned like expired VFC vaccines. They should be disposed of as medical waste.
  • You can submit VFC vaccines and COVID vaccines in the same nonviable form.

Even if you need to enter the NDCs and lot numbers manually the above information applies. Remember that vaccine won’t automatically show up in the nonviable screen in MIIC unless it was directly shipped to your site.

MIIC biannual webinar series recordings and CEUs

MIIC has completed its fall webinar series! It was well attended by engaged participants. Recordings can be found on the MIIC User Guidance and Training Resources page. Continuing education units (CEUs) are available to anyone who attended the webinars live or those who listen to the recordings. The CEU evaluation survey can be found linked under the recordings on the website. MIIC will hold its spring 2023 webinar series in April/May of 2023. If you have any questions, please reach out to the MIIC Help Desk at health.miichelp@state.mn.us.

Find previous bulletins at COVID-19 Vaccine Provider Updates.