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Welcome to the COVID-19 Vaccine Partner Newsletter! Here you'll find the latest news and information on COVID-19 vaccine related topics.
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Q: IS THE WORLD'S BEST COVID-19 VACCINE NEWSLETTER COMING TO AN END?
A: While it is true that the COVID-19 emergency order in Washington state has been lifted as of Tuesday this week, we are proud to continue bringing you the most up-to-date and relevant COVID-19 content... with one caveat: the COVID-19 Vaccine Partner Newsletter will now be issued bi-weekly.
Though COVID-19 is no longer viewed as an emergency here in Washington, the hard work of public health, health care, and citizens alike will be ongoing to keep Washingtonians safe. COVID-19 education, prevention, and treatment efforts are all here to stay and the newsletter will be here to bring you the most important reports of it all.
Thank you for your continued support. Don't miss the next issue, out November 18th!
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GOVENOR INSLEE ENDS COVID-19 EMERGENCY ORDER IN WA AS OF OCTOBER 31ST
Monday, October 31st, was the last day of the governor’s COVID emergency declaration for Washington state. While COVID-19 is here to stay, the governor's office has stated that "thanks to vaccinations, medical treatments, and the innumerable efforts of countless Washingtonians..." COVID-19 is no longer seen as an emergency. The governor also credits Washington as having one of the lowest COVID-19 death rates in the nation, the fifth-lowest death rate to be exact.
In a statement on Monday, Governor Inslee urged the importance of staying up-to-date on vaccinations despite the emergency order ending, and stresses the importance of safety measures such as masking as COVID-19 is still poses a threat to public health. "The secretary of the Department of Health's masking order will continue to cover healthcare and long-term care facilities, as well as some correctional facilities in communities where community levels are high".
It is important to acknowledge the catastrophic amount of lives lost throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and the roughly 300 daily deaths due to COVID-19 within the U.S. still occurring. According to Governor Inslee's statement from last week "Safety precautions in workplaces, healthcare facilities and certain congregate settings will continue. Local health jurisdictions may continue to have additional COVID requirements in place as well."
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AIM UPDATES COVID-19 VACCINATION SOCIAL MEDIA TOOLKIT FOR OUTREACH TO MINORITY ADULTS
The COVID-19 vaccination social media toolkit was adapted from the existing ‘Vaccine Access and Training’ (VAT) project and is available for all AIM members. The HRSA-funded VAT project provides resources to address disparities in COVID-19 vaccination coverage among racial and ethnic minority adults.
We encourage you to utilize and share this toolkit in your jurisdictions, including with your communications office, health equity coordinators, local health and community partners, and your state/county immunization and health coalitions. We have included tips for using social media and writing posts. Additional sample messages and graphics that can be used for Facebook and Instagram Stories will be released in the upcoming months
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UPDATED BIVALENT BOOSTER DISCUSSION GUIDE FOR PROVIDERS/PARTNERS
We have updated our Provider/partner discussion guide: building vaccine confidence in COVID-19 boosters (PDF) to focus the discussion on updated COVID-19 bivalent boosters to help increase updated booster uptake. This discussion guide can be used in health care settings or other settings where COVID-19 vaccines are administered when interacting with patients. Please circulate this resource to providers/partners who discuss or administer COVID-19 vaccines.
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SNAPSHOT OF COVID-19 VACCINES UPDATED
The Snapshot of the COVID-19 Vaccines has been updated to include information on 5-11 bivalent boosters and Novavax 18+ boosters. this document is currently available in English and Spanish, and will be available soon in 36 additional languages. check the document out in the links below!
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CLARIFICATION ON USE OF NOVAVAX COVID-19 VACCINE FOR BOOSTER
There have been several questions submitted regarding the use of Novavax COVID-19 vaccine as a booster since it was authorized for use by FDA and now recommended by CDC. The following is the specific guidance for reference:
The biggest point of confusion lies in the last statement “or they would otherwise not receive a booster dose”. For clarification, this booster dose is for those individuals that have completed a primary series and have received no booster doses. It is not authorized for anyone who have already received any previous COVId-19 vaccine booster doses, even if they would otherwise not receive an additional booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Please see links below for more information:
CDC Allows Novavax Monovalent COVID-19 Boosters for Adults Ages 18 and Older | CDC Online Newsroom | CDC
Novavax HCP Fact Sheet 10192022 (fda.gov)
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NO ORDERS WILL BE DELIVERED NOVEMBER 23-27
Deliveries resume Monday, Nov. 28
Plan to order early prior to the holiday week.
Pfizer
- No vaccine deliveries will occur on Wednesday Nov. 23 through Sunday Nov. 27.
- If you need vaccine for clinics scheduled on the holiday weekend:
- Submit your orders early, preferably the week of Nov. 14
Moderna Centrally Distributed Vaccines
- No vaccine deliveries will occur on Wednesday, Nov. 23 through Sunday, Nov. 27.
- If you need vaccine for clinics scheduled on the holiday weekend:
Submit your orders early, preferably the week of Nov. 14
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POSSIBLE MODERNA SHELF-LIFE EXTENSION (MONOVALENT ONLY)
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Moderna is currently evaluating lots of Moderna 10 and Moderna 5 vaccine for submission to the FDA for shelf-life extension. The decision from the FDA will require a few days for review and some vaccine may expire before the review process is complete.
CDC is requesting that providers quarantine and hold both Moderna 10 and Moderna 5 lots at correct storage temperature and conditions as they reach their expiration date to avoid possible administration errors with expired vaccine. CDC has clinical materials outlining correct storage and handling practices for Moderna vaccines.
Additional requests for extension are planned throughout the month for Moderna 10 and Moderna 5 lots that expire in November. The list below includes only the first set of lots being submitted to FDA, all of which are Moderna 10.
A submission for shelf-life extension does not guarantee approval by FDA.
Please be aware that the Moderna Expiry Lookup page and CDC's COVID-19 Vaccine Lot Number and Expiration Date Report will not be updated until after FDA approves the requests for extension. As updates about the shelf-life extensions becomes available, it will be communicated via the newsletter.
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CHANGES TO DIGITAL DATA LOGGERS
We need your help! We are still seeing about 3000 boxes per week entering into long term (>24 hour) storage on your dashboards.
Reminder: The Pfizer Shippers contain a flyer with directions for unpacking the container. Step 3 in the shipping brochure under Unpacking the Thermal Shipping Container (pictured below) reads:
Upon receipt, press and hold the stop button for 5 seconds.
This action turns off the Controlant device and generates a report of temperature readings to ensure the vaccine product has been maintained at the proper temperature during transport.
Please do not continue to use the shipper temperature monitor in your storage units. Sites are responsible for continuing to monitor the product storage temperatures.
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HOLIDAY ORDER APPROVAL SCHEDULE
COVID-19 vaccine orders are typically approved on Mondays and Thursdays at 12pm (noon). Due to the upcoming Federal Holidays, the COVID-19 Vaccine Program will adjust the ordering cadence during those weeks.
The adjusted ordering schedule during the holiday weeks is as follows:
- Wednesday, November 23 (instead of Thursday, November 24)
- Tuesday, December 27 (instead of Monday, December 26)
- Tuesday, January 3 (instead of Monday, January 2)
Please note that COVID-19 Vaccine will continue to be delivered on Veterans Day, November 11th. If your facility will be closed or unable to receive a shipment of vaccine on November 11th, please do not place any orders on or after November 9th.
Please keep the adjusted schedule in mind when planning future vaccine clinics.
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SINGLE DOSE VIALS & BIVALENT BOOSTERS FOR UNDER 5 COMING SOON
Single Dose Vials Coming Soon
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has announced the anticipated release of Pfizer single dose vials for the bivalent booster vaccine. This is expected to become available for ordering in the Immunization Information System (IIS) in late November or early December. Initial roll out of single dose vials will be very limited, and providers that have capacity to manage multidose vials should continue to order multidose vials.
Bivalent Boosters for Children under 5 years
CDC has announced that bivalent boosters for children under the age of 5 are anticipated to be authorized in late December or early January. The program will communicate updates to providers and partners via the newsletter as information becomes available.
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UPDATED PRODUCT DESCRIPTION FOR COVID-19 VACCINE
The COVID-19 vaccine product descriptions seen on the Vaccination View/Add and Vaccination Detail screens in the WAIIS have been updated to include cap color for Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines. The inclusion of cap color no longer creates a misalignment with boxes for entering vaccine administration on this screen. Additionally, the term ‘bivalent booster’ is included in the product description for the new Pfizer and Moderna bivalent booster vaccines.
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COVID-19 BIVALENT BOOSTER SAFETY AND ADMINSTRATION WEBINAR
Tuesday, November 8, 2022 - 12PM-1PM PST
The Washington State Department of Health will host a COVID-19 Bivalent Booster Safety and Administration Webinar on November 8, 2022 from 12pm-1pm. The webinar will cover safety data related to COVID-19 bivalent vaccine booster recommendations, and discuss the updated booster schedule for everyone 5 years and older. The webinar will be recorded and continuing education will be available for nurses.
Learning objectives:
- Discuss safety studies for COVID-19 bivalent vaccines
- Describe updated COVID-19 bivalent vaccine schedule
- Identify strategies to prevent and address COVID-19 bivalent vaccine administration errors
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ENCOURAGE COVID-19 VACCINES BY JOINING THE POWER OF PROVIDERS INITIATIVE
Staying up to date with COVID-19 vaccines, including boosters, is an important line of protection against severe illness, hospitalization, and death due to COVID-19. It is also critical to protecting our health care workforce and hospital system.
The Power of Providers (POP) Initiative is here to support you, as a trusted source of health information, in having COVID-19 vaccine conversations with patients and colleagues. Join the POP Initiative to benefit from consolidated access to the most current COVID-19 vaccine information, discussion guides, clinical information, and a self-service portal to order free patient materials. POP also offers webinars and training, including an upcoming behavior health refresher webinar series for health care workers. Please share these webinar opportunities with colleagues:
Thanks to your ongoing efforts, Washington has one of the highest vaccination rates in the country. With more work to do, we look forward to having you join the POP Initiative!
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NEW CDC WEBINAR: RECOMMENDATIONS FOR BIVALENT COVID-19 BOOSTER DOSES
CDC’s COVID-19 Vaccine Webinars are brief presentations designed to provide immunization providers with the most up-to-date information on the vaccines used to fight the virus that causes COVID-19. The new Recommendations for Bivalent COVID-19 Booster Doses course discusses recommendations for a bivalent COVID-19 booster dose, the interim COVID-19 immunization schedule to date, COVID-19 vaccine products, and recommended actions for addressing bivalent and monovalent COVID-19 vaccine administration errors.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
- Apply recommendations for a bivalent booster dose.
- Describe the interim COVID-19 immunization schedule.
- Identify and differentiate COVID-19 vaccine products.
- Prevent vaccine administration errors and take action if they occur.
The webinar includes self-test practice questions and lists additional resources related to the topic discussed. Continuing education (CE) credit for the course is available through March 18, 2023. The webinar is prerecorded and registration is not required. Contact NIPinfo@cdc.gov if you have any questions about the webinar or need help with accessibility.
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FOR SCHOOLS AND CHILD CARE FACILITIES
FOR LONG-TERM CARE FACILITIES
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SIGN UP FOR THIS NEWSLETTER!
If you aren't already signed up for the COVID-19 Vaccine Partner Newsletter, please visit the Department of Health's email subscribers page here. Once you enter your email, on the next page expand the Immunization topic, select the COVID-19 Vaccine Partner Newsletter, and click submit.
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This newsletter summarizes content from the week of October 30, 2022 and was sent out on November 4, 2022. |
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