OPA COVID-19 Vaccines: August 2, 2021 Update

 

Johnson and Johnson (Janssen) COVID-19 Vaccine Expiration Date Extension
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced an extended shelf life for the J&J COVID-19 Vaccine from 4.5 months to 6 months. This is based on ongoing research on the stability of the vaccine when refrigerated at termperatures of 36-46 degrees Fahrenheit. Vaccinators who have current stock of the J&J vaccine must visit https://vaxcheck.jnj/ to confirm the latest expiration dates of vaccines. The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) encourages vaccinators to check the vaccinators website often to obtain the lates information on expiration for vaccines on hand at your pharmacy.

Johnson and Johnson (Janssen) COVID-19 Vaccine Stock Available
ODH has additional stock of the J&J COVID-19 vaccine that is within the new extended expiration dates. If your pharmacy needs additional stock of the J&J COVID-19 vaccine, please update the pharmacy VOMS account to reflect the order quantity needed for the J&J COVID-19 vaccine. If you have difficulty ordering the vaccine please contact Myriam Shaw Ojeda at mshawojeda@ohiopharmacists.org so that OPA can communicate the pharmacy’s need for additional stock.

Independent Pharmacy COVID-19 Vaccine Incentives for Medicaid Patients: August 4 Survey Deadline
Independent pharmacies have two options to incentivize Medicaid patients who get their first COVID-19 shot at their pharmacy.

1. Pharmacies can receive Visa gift cards directly to give to patients. Pharmacies that have already ordered these gift cards should receive them by the end of this week. If you are an independent pharmacy vaccinator, please fill out this COVID-19 Medicaid Patient Incentive Survey to provide the number of gift cards needed for 30 days by the close of business on Wednesday 8/04/2021. Thank you to those who have already responded with the projected numbers of gift cards needed.
   • Please ensure that the gift card tracker documents have patient information specific to each managed care plan and that the information is sent securely via email to protect patient data. Vaccinators can use this COVID-19 Vaccine Gift Card Tracker Example. Vaccinators can add all of the information for all MCOs in ONE tracker now and send that tracker to RxCOVIDTracking@CENTENE.COM.
2. Pharmacies that cannot use Visa gift cards can also share an incentive flyer created specifically for Medicaid patients to receive a gift card online. Please print and share the COVID-19 Incentive Flyer with your patients.

Helpful State Vaccine Resources and Information
The following resources are helpful for vaccinators to contact ODH regarding vaccine shipments:

• COVID Vaccine Provider Call Center: 1-844-963-4829 (The ODH Provider Call Center is open daily from 8:00 am – 7:00 pm Monday through Friday and is no longer open on weekends)
• COVID-19 Vaccine Provider Resources website
• ImpactSIIS Job Aids and Videos
• ImpactSIIS help desk: email impact@odh.ohio.gov for assistance or call 1-866-349-0002.

    OPA is working diligently to facilitate communication between state decision-makers and member pharmacists. OPA has created multiple COVID-19 resources, including a COVID-19 Vaccine Information Webpage, COVID-19 Testing Hub, and COVID-19 Resources Webpage, on the OPA website www.ohiopharmacists.org under the Resources drop-down box. For further questions, please contact Myriam Shaw Ojeda, Fellow in Policy and Innovation, at mshawojeda@ohiopharmacists.org.