CDC's Ordering System Will Be Down

CDC's vaccine ordering system will be unavailable from Thursday, September 30 at 9 a.m. Pacific Time until Friday, October 1, 2021 at 2 p.m. Pacific Time due to CDC’s federal fiscal year transition. During this outage, no vaccine orders can be processed.

Please note, you can still submit vaccine orders in the IIS, however, your DOH team can not process any of those orders during this outage. Please plan your orders accordingly.

Thank you for your patience.

Updated Vaccine Information Statements (VIS)

In early August, several Vaccine Information Statements (VIS) were updated. Please check all of your clinic’s printed VIS and replace any that are outdated with the most current versions.

Visit CDC’s VIS webpage to print the current versions of each statement. You can also sign up through this webpage to receive email alerts when VIS are updated.   

Which Flu Vaccine to Use?

If you receive flu vaccine through the Childhood Vaccine Program, print out or bookmark a great reference showing the flu vaccines and recommended age/dosages.

According to Washington state law (RCW 70.95M.115), children under 3 years of age and pregnant persons should NOT be given vaccines that contain more than trace amounts of mercury (thimerosal).

Use the following flu vaccines for the following groups (follow appropriate age guidance for each vaccine):

*Fluzone and FluLaval: 6 months-18 years; Flucelvax: 2-18 years

IAC Updated 2021–2022 Screening Checklists

The Immunization Action Coalition updated the 2021–2022 Screening Checklist for Contraindications to Live Attenuated Intranasal Influenza Vaccination to provide more details regarding cerebrospinal fluid leak. IAC also updated the Screening Checklist for Contraindications to Inactivated Injectable Influenza Vaccination to expand the options for vaccination now recommended by CDC for people who have had a severe allergic reaction to a prior dose of flu vaccine.

CDC Webinar: Recommendations for Pfizer COVID-19 Booster Vaccination

Join the September 28, 2021 webinar hosted by CDC: What Clinicians Need to Know about the Latest CDC Recommendations for Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Booster Vaccination. If you miss the live webinar, the webpage will contain a copy of the slides and the recording.

For questions about the immunization schedule, the Immunization Information System forecast, or any other immunization clinical questions, please send an email to ImmuneNurses@doh.wa.gov. Check out the Immunization Training web page for more resources and training opportunities.

Vaccine Finder Tool Not Yet Updated with Flu

The federal Flu Vaccine Finder tool at www.vaccines.gov is not yet updated to reflect Flu vaccine locations. It still currently only shows COVID-19 vaccine locations. We expect that the CDC is working through this and will share updates soon.

Thank you for your patience.

Check Out DOH's Flu Blog

Click the link to read the latest on flu vaccine promotion.

Let’s Knock Out Flu Again, Washington | by Washington State Department of Health | Public Health Connection | Sep, 2021 | Medium

Vaccine Choice Coming Soon

The vaccine choice period when you can change your preferred vaccine brands to order is coming up in October. Stay tuned for more information.