OPA COVID-19 Vaccines: October 18, 2021 Update

^NewPediatric Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine Ordering through VOMS: Deadline Oct 20
Vaccinators who plan to administer the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 -11 can order the vaccine through the Ohio Vaccine Ordering Management System (VOMS) no later than noon on Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2021. Pharmacies may receive the pediatric COVID-19 vials before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves the vaccine for this age group under and emergency use authorization. Vaccinators are directed to hold the vaccines onsite under appropriate temperature conditions until the FDA provides directive authorizing administration. Please note the following important specifications for pediatric Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines:

• The current adult/adolescent formulation (with a purple cap) cannot be used to vaccinate children ages 5-11. The future pediatric (orange cap) formulation may only be used for children ages 5-11.
• Preliminary information suggests the new pediatric formulation will:
• Come in a vial with an orange cap.
• Have 10 micrograms (mcg) dosage (compared with the adult/adolescent formulation of 30 mcg.)
• Contain 10 doses per vial.
• Require dilution.
• The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 5-11-year-olds will be a new product configuration with:
• New packaging.
• New preparation.
• A new national drug code (NDC).

• The minimum number of doses that can be ordered is 300. The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) estimates that this minimum ordering quantity will go down to 100 doses.
  • Smaller providers are encouraged to work with ODH to identify and form regional partnerships if needed to transfer vaccine in the early distribution phase. If you need assistance with the transfer process, please reach out to the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) Provider Call Center at 1-844-9ODHVAX (1-844-963-4829), available between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, or email COVIDVACCINE@odh.ohio.gov.
• Preliminary temperature storage information, pending FDA authorization, is as follows. The product will be delivered in a newly updated product shipper at minus 80⁰C. You do not need ultracold storage units to order this vaccine. If you do not have ultracold storage, plan to order only what you believe can be administered in the first 10 weeks following FDA authorization.

^NewODH Pediatric COVID-19 Ordering Webinar Training on 10/19
ODH will present a webinar on Tuesday, Oct. 19, at 2 p.m. via Microsoft Teams at https://bit.ly/ODHVaccineOrdering to review the ordering process and share key updates about the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for youth ages 5-11. Topics covered will include pre-ordering, preparation, and administration guidance.

Microsoft Teams meeting 

Click here to join the meeting

Or call in (audio only)

+1 614-721-2972,,909595612# 

Phone Conference ID: 909 595 612#

^NewImportant temporary shipping halt for adult/adolescent Pfizer vaccine
During the first week of roll-out and shipment of the new Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine product for children ages 5-11, there will be a brief period of time during which shipments of adult/adolescent doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech/Comirnaty vaccine sent directly from the manufacturer will be halted (shipments greater than 1,170 doses). Please note: VOMS will continue to be available for providers to place orders for all COVID-19 vaccines during this time. The ODH Receipt Store and Stage (RSS) Warehouse will continue to redistribute the Pfizer-BioNTech/Comirnaty adolescent/adult vaccine throughout this interval. Providers are encouraged to plan ahead and place orders prior to Oct. 26 for Pfizer-BioNTech adult/adolescent vaccine that may be needed in early November.

Ohio VAX-2-School
Vaccinating eligible children is crucial to protecting children from the severity of COVID-19 infections and increasing the likelihood of continued in-person teaching in Ohio’s schools. Governor DeWine announced the Ohio Vax-2-School program for Ohioans ages 12 to 25. All vaccinated individuals in this age bracket are eligible for 50 scholarships worth $10,000 each and five $100,000 scholarships to an Ohio college or university for career or technical education.  Registration is open for all eligible Ohioans at www.ohiovax2school.com. Prizes will be announced after an anticipated request from Pfizer to approve their COVID-19 vaccine through an emergency use authorization for children ages 5 to 11. More details will be announced in the coming days.

Reminder: Medicaid Vaccine Incentives Deadline Extended
Ohio’s managed care plans announced that the incentives for administering the COVID-19 vaccine have been extended to December 31, 2021. The incentives include gift cards for patients ages 12 and above on Medicaid who received their first dose. 

1. Pharmacies can receive Visa gift cards directly to give to patients. If you are an independent pharmacy vaccinator, please email RxCovidTracking@centene.com for your gift card needs. Thank you to those who have already responded with the projected numbers of gift cards needed.
1. Once you get to 75% of your gift card allocation, please reach out to Attn: Meera Patel-Zook – Gift Card Request at RxCovidTracking@centene.com  so that they can ship out an additional allotment to your store.

If you have received gift cards, please track them using COVID-19 Vaccine Gift Card Tracker Example. Vaccinators can now add all the information for all MCOs in ONE tracker and send that tracker to RxCOVIDTracking@CENTENE.COM. 

ODH Motivations and Barriers Survey
ODH has developed a patient survey to understand real-time patient motivations and barriers related to the COVID vaccines. This survey is voluntary. ODH will not collect personal identifying information. Vaccinators are requested to provide this four-question survey to vaccine recipients before vaccination or during the 15-minute wait period after vaccination. Ideas for methods to offer the survey include:

• A staff person reading the questions to the patient and collecting the data on a computer or tablet.
• Patients scanning the QR code to complete the survey on their personal devices.
• The patient provided with access to a tablet or computer to complete the survey

Here is the link to the survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PLW3DQC. Participation in this survey is voluntary.

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. Please contact Myriam Shaw Ojeda Director of Pharmacy Extension and Public Health Initiatives, for further questions at mshawojeda@ohiopharmacists.org.