H1N1 vaccine arrives in South Carolina

More of the vaccine against novel influenza A H1N1 is headed to the states as manufacturers continue to roll it out in small shipments, federal officials said Friday.

Of the 6.8 million doses now available, about 3.7 million had been ordered by the states for distribution, said Anne Schuchat, the director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control initially ordered 26,300 doses, and some of that began arriving Friday at health departments around the state, spokesman Thom Berry said. Private providers also might have received the vaccine, which is a live attenuated virus nasal vaccine only approved for healthy people ages 2 to 49.

South Carolina has ordered an additional 27,300 doses, which could include both the nasal and the injectable form of the vaccine.

The Georgia Division of Public Health had placed an order for 54,800 doses, some of which has gone to the East Central Health District in Augusta and will be distributed Monday by the Richmond and Columbia counties' health departments to children ages 2-4.

A Georgia public health spokeswoman did not respond Friday to messages seeking an update.

Dr. Schuchat said the H1N1 shots are expected to roll out next week. The CDC plans to hold an update Tuesday, spokesman Tom Skinner said.

The vaccine is undergoing testing in various populations, including pregnant women, and will soon be tested in those with HIV and asthma, said Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

So far, there have been no serious adverse events from the shots, he said. Though there have been concerns about the H1N1 vaccine, it is made exactly the same way and by the same companies that make the one for seasonal influenza, Dr. Schuchat said.

"There's a very strong safety record with them," she said.

About 77 million doses of seasonal flu vaccine have been distributed so far -- the most ever sent out at this point during a flu season -- but many have complained that they are not getting their orders filled, Dr. Schuchat acknowledged. Manufacturers could be juggling the production of the seasonal flu shot with the H1N1 vaccine, she said.

McKesson Co., which is the distributor for both the H1N1 and contracts with CDC to distribute seasonal flu shots through the Vaccines for Children program, said it has set up separate distribution systems for the two.

"There is absolutely no correlation between the H1N1 vaccine distribution effort and the seasonal flu vaccine deliveries," spokesman James Larkin said in an e-mail. McKesson has established six distribution centers for H1N1, four for the vaccine and two for related supplies, Mr. Larkin said.

But Dr. Karen Foushee of Pediatric Partners of Augusta said that practice is still owed about 75 percent of its seasonal flu shot order, which is delaying some flu shot clinics.

Reach Tom Corwin at (706) 823-3213 or tom.corwin@augustachronicle.com.