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Influenza - prevent a bad disease with a good vaccine!
Vaccine Production, Ordering, and Distribution
Influenza Vaccines for the 2007-2008 Influenza Vaccination Season
Manufacturer Product Formulation Age Indication
CSL Biotherapies Afluria® 5.0 mL vial (10 doses) 18 years & older
0.5 mL single-dose syringe
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Fluarix 0.5 mL prefilled syringe
(single dose)
18 years & older
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) FluLaval 5.0 mL vial (10 doses) 18 years & older
MedImmune FluMist 0.2 mL prefilled single-use sprayer
(10 dose pack)
2 through 49 years
Novartis Vaccines FluVirin 0.5 mL single-dose syringe
5.0 mL vial (10 doses)
4 years and older
sanofi pasteur FluZone® 5.0 mL vial (10 doses) 6 months and older
0.5 mL single-dose syringe 36 months and older
0.25 mL single-dose syringe 6-35 months

Influenza Vaccine Ordering
Most providers order influenza vaccine for the coming vaccination season in the winter and spring of the preceding year. Depending on many factors, orders can be placed direct with the manufacturer, with a distributor, the state’s VFC program, or a group purchasing arrangement.

Once the vaccination season is under way, the Influenza Vaccine Availability Tracking System (IVATS) also becomes operational. IVATS enables healthcare providers to view at a glance which distributors have vaccine available to sell.

Order from a manufacturer: To order either Fluarix (GSK) or FluZone (sanofi pasteur), contact the manufacturer.

Order from a distributor: To order FluLaval (GSK), FluMist (MedImmune), or FluVirin (Novartis), contact one of the many distributors that you will find here.

View vaccine currently for sale on the Influenza Vaccine
Availability Tracking System (IVATS), a product of the National
Influenza Vaccine Summit.

Interested in Learning More About Influenza Vaccine Production?
Read a report from the Health Industry Distributors Association, a non-profit trade association of medical products distributors who service healthcare providers, that explains the process that determines when and how vaccine reaches doctors, hospitals, nursing homes, and others.

Understanding the Dynamics of Influenza Vaccine Supply and Demand -- Five Issue Briefs. This series of briefs were prepared for the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation of the Department of Health and Human Services in October 2005.

Overview -- Summary and Assessment: roles and responsibilities of the influenza vaccine stakeholders.
 
Vaccine Economics: characteristics of the influenza vaccine market, industry regulatory requirements for vaccine productions, and factors affecting the profitability of vaccine production.


Who Buys It and Who Sells It: the vaccine supply chain and potential means for facilitating vaccine purchase and distribution.


Vaccine Manufacturing: the unique characteristics of the influenza vaccine, the structure of the industry, decisions about the amount of vaccine produced each year, investments in new technologies, and other factors.

The Chicken and the Egg: factors that impact the demand for vaccine and how they can affect supply.

American Medical Association: Science, Research, and Technology
Litjen (L.J.) Tan, PhD litjen.tan@ama-assn.org

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Diane Peterson, editor  •  Mitch Rothholz, RPh, MBA, contributing editor