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Short-Dated Vaccines

Take Action to Prevent Vaccine Loss: Utilizing Short-dated Vaccines

Recommended Strategies

  1. Check your 317-funded VFA vaccine inventory to identify short-dated vaccines. As part of proper vaccine management, the clinic should be conducting a routine physical inventory and reviewing usage reports monthly.
  2. Place any short-dated vaccines towards the front of the vaccine storage unit to ensure these doses are used first.
  3. Recall patients who need to be vaccinated. Schedule patients to come in to use doses before they expire.
  4. If you cannot use the vaccines before they expire, contact the VFA Program 6 months before the expiration date to request permission to transfer. You can only transfer 317-funded vaccines to another VFA provider or a local health department (LHD) clinic.
    • Each vaccine transport exposes vaccines to potentially inappropriate temperature conditions. CDC discourages routine vaccine transport because manufacturers do not generally recommend it or provide any guidance. While being transported to alternative locations, temperatures must be monitored and recorded using VFC transport logs.
    • Notify the Provider Call Center 1-833-502-1245 and follow up with an email to my317vaccines@cdph.ca.gov.
    • Email my317vaccines@cdph.ca.gov with your VFA PIN, the number of doses, the expiration date, and the VFA PIN of the receiving VFA/LHD provider.
    • To find a provider in your area who can use the doses, search the provider map. Once you have located a provider near you, call them to ask if they are able to take the doses. Note: The red pin indicates the office is a VFA Provider.
    • Follow the appropriate transporting vaccine instructions on myCAvax.
    • The VFA Program discourages transferring varicella-containing vaccine because of sensitive temperature requirements.
    • The VFA Program also discourages transferring open boxes. Do not transfer partially used multi-dose vials.
    • If a temperature excursion occurs during transport, contact manufacturers to determine vaccine viability and submit an excursion report on myCAvax.
  5. If you are unable to use or transfer the doses before they expire, the clinic must submit a return form online (found on your myCAvax account) after the doses expire.
  6. Ultimately each clinic is reponsible for the doses they order. Order a reasonable amount of vaccine that you can utilize until the next VFA order period to avoid excess vaccine inventory.

Below are suggested strategies for your consideration and examples:

Recall strategy: outreach to UNINSURED patients needing the soon-to-expire vaccination to get them to come into your clinic.

  • Determine who is recommended to receive the soon-to-expire vaccine.
  • Run a report from your practice electronic health record (EHR) or immunization registry of VFA-eligible patients due for the soon-to-expire vaccine(s).
  • Decide whether to schedule immunization-only appointments for each patient or hold a vaccination clinic.
  • Recall those patients using your clinic’s reminder-recall system. To improve the proportion of patients who are successfully recalled, consider waiving any patient fees or addressing any other access barriers.
    • Include messages such as, “Our records show that you are overdue for Zoster vaccine. This vaccine is recommended for patients 50 years and older. It helps protect you from shingles, a painful skin rash that can be severe and last a long time. Call now to schedule an appointment.​   

       Examples:

  • Zoster: run a report of all active, uninsured/underinsured, patients 50 years and older or 19 years and immunocompromised who have no record of receiving a Zoster vaccine.
  • Zoster: run a report of all active, uninsured/underinsured, patients 50 years and older or 19 years and immunocompromised who are due for a second dose of Zoster vaccine (at least 2 months since the first dose).
  • PCV20: run a report of all active, uninsured/underinsured, patients 65 years and older who have no record of receiving PCV20 vaccine.
  • PCV20: run a report of all active, uninsured/underinsured, patients 65 years and older who only received 1 dose of PPSV23.
  • Stepwise: Recall all active, uninsured/underinsured, patients 65 years and older who are overdue for EITHER PCV20 vaccine and/or Zoster vaccine, and then move on to the 60 to 65-year-old active, uninsured/underinsured patients who are overdue for Zoster. Patients identified as overdue for PCV20 and Zoster vaccine can receive both vaccines.

Routine visit strategy: focus on ANY patients coming into the clinic for other reasons (but also need the soon-to-expire vaccine).

  • Determine who is recommended to receive the soon-to-expire vaccine. (The steps below use Zoster as an example only).
  • During pre-visit planning, use your EHR or registry to identify any patient needing that vaccine. For Zoster, this would be patients 50 years and older who have no record of receiving a Zoster vaccine.
  • Determine who is eligible for VFA vaccines, and set up a workflow depending on the patient’s insurance status. (Reference: VFA Eligibility Based on Insurance Status).
    • Uninsured/Underinsured patients: immunize on site using VFA vaccine.
    • Medi-Cal patients: immunize on site using health center-purchased vaccine or refer to the patient’s network pharmacy. All routinely recommended adult immunizations, including Zoster vaccine, are included as a pharmacy benefit, whether the patient is in a managed care plan or fee-for-service program.
    • Medicare patients: Zoster is a covered pharmacy benefit under Medicare Part D. Patients with only Part B are considered underinsured and are eligible for VFA vaccine.