This year’s flu season is already shaping up to be markedly different
from last year’s in a few key ways. Notably, the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization
Practices has recommended against nasal spray vaccines. Changes like
these will likely be top-of-mind for your customers as the flu season
progresses.
To help you with your provider conversations, HIDA has released its 2016 Influenza Vaccine Production & Distribution Market Brief.
Beyond highlighting the CDC’s recommendation, the report contains
projections for this year’s season, insights from distributors, and a
look at data from last year’s flu season. Here are a few important
insights from the report:
- CDC sees no statistically significant evidence nasal spray vaccine offers immunity. The
CDC based its recommendation on data from the last three flu seasons.
Manufacturers dispute these findings, saying they are at odds with their
own research. Despite the CDC’s recommendation, the Food and Drug
Administration maintains its approval of the FluMist Quadrivalent
vaccine. MedImmune was expected to manufacture at least 14 million doses
of the vaccine – or about 8 percent of total flu vaccine production. At
the time of the survey, distributors reported a 44 percent decrease in
planned distribution of nasal spray vaccines, though the CDC
recommendation may cause a further decline.
- Manufacturers predict a spike in vaccine production.
Manufacturers predict between 157 and 168 million doses of injectable
vaccine will be distributed this season, up from about 146.6 million
last year. Manufacturers had expected to produce 174.5 million doses of
these vaccines for last year’s flu season.
- Physician offices remain the top vaccination site. Nearly
33 percent of adults and 63.7 percent of children received their
influenza vaccinations in physician offices last year, according to CDC
data. For adults, pharmacies and stores came in second (24.8 percent),
followed by the workplace (18.1 percent). Meanwhile, approximately 19
percent of children received their vaccination at a clinic, health
center, or other medical site, while 6.2 percent received it at school.
These figures are broadly in line with last year’s.
- CMS continues to require providers to track influenza immunization. The
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) continues to expand
influenza immunization quality reporting requirements for providers.
Customers who fail to report these and other measures could see their
Medicare payments reduced.
- Distributors continue to play a vital role in serving clinical professionals. In
addition to a robust flu vaccine supply, distributors plan to bring a
full line of essential medical products to providers throughout the
current flu season, according to HIDA’s Flu Products Survey. More than
60 percent of distributors report they will carry diagnostic flu tests,
hypodermic supplies, gloves, wound care equipment, disinfectant
products, and much more. Additionally, distributors were responsible for
delivering more than half of the gloves and 31 percent of skin care
products sold during the 2015 flu season.
The insights contained in this year’s report cover demand trends and
useful customer information. HIDA will continue to monitor vaccine and
medical product demand as part of its broad efforts to strengthen the
healthcare supply chain and foster effective responses to infectious
disease.
To download your copy of the flu report, visit www.HIDA.org/FluBrief. And feel free to contact us at HIDAGovAffairs@HIDA.org if you have any questions or would like more information.
From http://www.repertoiremag.com/hidas-insights-for-the-2016-flu-season.html