Draft Guidance on Prioritization of Pandemic
Influenza Vaccine
Draft Guidance on Prioritization of Pandemic
Influenza Vaccine
Who should get vaccinations first?
Benjamin Schwartz, M.D.National Vaccine Program Office, DHHS
• Why prioritize pandemic influenza vaccinations?
• 2005 ACIP/NVAC process and recommendations
• Current prioritization process and draft guidance
• Next steps
Issues to addressIssues to address
• Everyone will be susceptible
• Current minimum of ~20 weeks to first pandemic vaccine availability
• U.S.-based production capacity currently is not sufficient to make vaccine rapidly for the entire population
• Targeting groups for earlier or later vaccination will best support pandemic response goals to reduce health, societal, and economic impacts
Why prioritize pandemic vaccine?Why prioritize pandemic vaccine?
Initiatives to increase pandemic influenza vaccine availability
• HHS has invested over $1 billion to:
– Increase vaccine production capacity
– Develop and license new vaccine production technologies (e.g., cell culture, recombinants) that will increase surge capacity and reduce time to availability
– Evaluate adjuvanted vaccine formulations
“Preparedness now decreases the need forallocation decisions later”
Kathy Kinlaw, MDiv, Emory Univ.CDC Ethics Subcommittee
Unclear timing and supply of vaccine for the first pandemic wave
• Unclear timing of pandemic spread– Mathematical modeling predicts ~55 days to first U.S. case
and 80 – 120 days from first case to peak of first wave
– Substantial uncertainty• Wide range around point estimates
• Unknown where a pandemic will start
• Potential impact of seasonality
• Unclear vaccine supply– Depends on U.S.-based capacity when a pandemic occurs
– Depends on antigen concentration per dose• For H5N1 vaccines, antigen concentration in clinical trials ranged
from 3.8 ug to 90 ug depending on formulation
Pandemic vaccine prioritization 2005: Pandemic vaccine prioritization 2005: ACIP/NVACACIP/NVAC
• Joint work of HHS vaccine advisory committees• Process included consideration of
– Vaccine supply and efficacy– Impacts of past pandemics by age and risk group– Potential impacts on critical infrastructures – especially
healthcare– Ethical concerns
• Recommendations included in the 2005 HHS pandemic plan – As guidance for State/local planning – To promote further discussions
ACIP/NVAC priority groupsACIP/NVAC priority groups
Personnel CumulativeTier and population groups ( 1,000’s) total (1,000’s)1A. Health care involved in direct patient 9,000 9,000 contact + essential support Vaccine and antiviral drug manufacturing 40 9,040 personnel
1B. Highest risk groups 25,840 34,880
1C. Household contacts of children <6 mo, severely 10,700 45,580 immune compromised, and pregnant women
1D. Key government leaders + critical public 151 45,731 health pandemic responders
2. Rest of high risk 59,100 104,831 Most CI and other PH emergency responders 8,500 113,331
3. Other key government health decision 500 113,831 makers + mortuary services
4. Healthy 2-64 years not in other groups 179,260 293,091
Rationale for reconsideration of Rationale for reconsideration of pandemic vaccine prioritizationpandemic vaccine prioritization
• Evolving planning assumptions
– More severe pandemic; increased absenteeism
• Results from public engagement meetings
– Preserving essential services ranked as top goal over protecting high-risk individuals
• Additional analysis of critical infrastructures (CI)
– National Infrastructure Advisory Council study of CI sectors and vaccination priority groups
Rationale for an interagency pandemic vaccine prioritization working group
• Need for broad expertise and input– A pandemic will affect all sectors
– Security & CI issues are a major focus
• Interagency participation facilitates policy approval
• Charge in the National Implementation Plan
“HHS in coordination with DHS and sector specific agencies…shall identify lists of personnel and high-risk groups that should be considered for priority access to medical countermeasures under various pandemic scenarios”
National Implementation Plan, Action 6.1.14.2http://www.whitehouse.gov/homeland/nspi_implementation_chap06.pdf
Interagency pandemic vaccine prioritization working group process
• Presentation and discussion of: – Prior ACIP/NVAC recommendations
– Scientific, public health & ethical issues
– Analysis & recommendations on critical infrastructure by the National Infrastructure Advisory Council
– National & homeland security issues
• Public engagement & stakeholder meeting
• Decision analysis
• Written comments submitted in response to a Federal Register and www.pandemicflu.gov notice
Ethics Considerations by the Ethics Considerations by the Interagency Working GroupInteragency Working Group
• Participation by NIH ethicist and ethicists from MN Center for Healthcare Ethics
• Process issues
– Transparency, inclusiveness, reasonableness
• Content issues
– Preserving society considered before protecting individuals
– Fairness – value all equally; treat all in a priority group the same
– Reciprocity – protect those who assume occupational risk
– Flexibility – reconsider strategy periodically and at the time of a pandemic
National Infrastructure Advisory Council National Infrastructure Advisory Council analysis of critical infrastructure (CI) for a analysis of critical infrastructure (CI) for a
U.S. pandemicU.S. pandemic• Issues considered
– Essential functions of CI and key resource (KR) sectors (e.g., maintain national & homeland security; ensure economic survival; maintain health & welfare)
– Interdependencies between sectors
– Workforces needed to maintain critical functions
• Process
– Survey of CI/KR operators; review of existing data and plans; interviews of subject matter experts
www.dhs.gov/niac
Identifying critical employee Identifying critical employee groups: all sectors, tier 1 onlygroups: all sectors, tier 1 only
Notes: a. Numbers include Tier 1 “essential” employees only.b. State and local government numbers removed from gross and priority
workforce numbers.
Employees: Tier 1 Only Banking & Finance: 417,000
Chemical: 161,309Commercial Facilities: 42,000Communications: 396,097Electricity: 50,000 Emergency Services: 1,997,583 Food and Agriculture: 500,000Healthcare: 6,999,725Information Technology: 692,800Nuclear: 86,000Oil and Natural Gas: 223,934Postal and Shipping: 115,344Transportation: 100,185Water and Wastewater: 608,000
TOTAL: 12,389,977
Tier 1 Statistics Banking & Finance
Chemical
Commercial Facilities
Communications
Electricity
Emergency Services
Food and Agriculture
Healthcare
Information Technology
Nuclear
Oil and Natural Gas
Postal and Shipping
Transportation
Water and Wastewater
Tier 1 Statistics Banking & Finance
Chemical
Commercial Facilities
Communications
Electricity
Emergency Services
Food and Agriculture
Healthcare
Information Technology
Nuclear
Oil and Natural Gas
Postal and Shipping
Transportation
Water and Wastewater
http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/niac/niac-pandemic-wg_v8-011707.pdf
• Objective: Consider the potential goals of pandemic vaccination and assign values to each
• Approach• Background presentations
• Group discussions
• Electronic voting
• Participants • Las Cruces NM – 108 persons; culturally diverse
• Nassau Co., NY – 130 persons; many older adults
• DC – ~90 persons from government, CI sectors, community organizations
Public engagement and stakeholder meetings
Value of pandemic vaccination goals: publicValue of pandemic vaccination goals: public(Las Cruces, Nassau Co.) and stakeholder (DC) (Las Cruces, Nassau Co.) and stakeholder (DC)
meeting results (7-point scale)meeting results (7-point scale)
Vaccination goal: To protect…Las
CrucesNassau County
D.C.
People working to fight pandemic & provide care 6.7 6.0 6.8
People providing essential community services 5.9 5.7 6.5
People most vulnerable due to jobs 5.8 5.6 5.9
Children 5.9 5.7 4.9
People most likely to spread virus to unprotected 5.3 5.3 4.6
People protecting homeland security 4.6 5.2 4.7
People most likely to get sick or die 4.5 4.8 4.8
People most likely to be protected by the vaccine 4.5 5.1 4.0
People keeping pandemic out of the U.S. 4.3 5.3 3.3
People providing essential economic services 3.0 4.2 4.5
Decision analysisDecision analysis
• Methods– 57 groups considered defined by job, age, and health status
– Interagency group rated extent to which each group met occupationally related objectives
– CDC and external influenza experts rated extent to which each group met “science based” objectives
• Vaccine effectiveness, risk of severe illness and death, and likelihood to transmit infection
– Weights applied based on public and stakeholder values
• Results– Highest ranked groups included public health responders,
HCWs, EMS providers, law enforcement, and children
Structure of the draft guidanceStructure of the draft guidance
• Vaccination will occur by tiers
• Target groups are defined in categories– Healthcare and community support services
– Critical infrastructure
– Homeland and national security
– General population
• Within categories, target groups are clustered in levels– Each group in a level has similar priority for vaccination
• Tiers combine target groups across categories
• Target groups are defined based on pandemic severity
Vaccination tiers for a severe pandemicVaccination tiers for a severe pandemic
Vaccination tiers
23 million
17 million
64 million
74 million
122 million
300 M
Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4 Tier 5
121,800,000Healthy adults 19–64 yrs old
38,000,000Persons >65 yrs old
36,000,000Persons 19–64 with high risk cond.
58,500,000Children 3–18 yrs without high risk
4,300,0006,500,000
Household contacts of infants < 6 moChildren 3–18 yrs with high risk cond.
3,100,00010,300,000
Pregnant womenInfants & toddlers 6–35 mo old
General population
1,400,000 to 3,500,000
Transportation, Food and agriculture, Banking and finance, Pharmaceutical, Chemical sector, Oil, Postal and shipping personnelOther important govt. personnel
1,900,000 to 4,400,000
Electricity, Natural gas, Communications, Water personnelCritical government personnel
2,000,000
50,00050,000
Emergency Medical Service, Law enforcement, Fire services personnelMfrs of pandemic vaccine & antiviralsKey government leaders
Critical infrastructure
500,000Other important health care personnel
600,000Community suppt. & emergency mgt.
300,0003,200,0002,000,000
800,000
Public health personnelInpatient health care providersOutpatient and home health providersHealth care providers in LTCFs
Health care and community support services
1,500,000Other active duty & essential suppt.
650,000150,000100,000500,000
50,000
Essential support & sustainment pers.Intelligence servicesBorder protection personnelNational Guard personnelOther domestic national security pers.
700,000Deployed and mission critical pers.Homeland and national security
Less severeModerateSevereEst. numberTarget groupCategory
Target groupsfor pandemicvaccinationby pandemicseverity
Tier 1Tier 2Tier 3Tier 4Tier 5Not targeted
Vaccination tiers for a severe pandemicVaccination tiers for a severe pandemic
Vaccination tiers
23 million
17 million
64 million
74 million
122 million
300 M
Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4 Tier 5
Rest of population
High risk population- High risk adults- Elderly
Critical occupations- Deployed forces- Critical healthcare- EMS- Fire- Police- Govt. leadersHigh risk population- Pregnant women- Infants- Toddlers
Critical occupations- Military support- Border protection- National Guard- Intelligence serv.- Other natl. security- Community serv.- Utilities- Communications- Critical govt.High risk population- Infant contacts- High risk children
Critical occupations- Other active duty- Other healthcare- Other CI sectors- Other govt.High risk population- Healthy children
Next steps: vetting the draft guidance with Next steps: vetting the draft guidance with the public and stakeholdersthe public and stakeholders
• 2 month comment period
– Request for comments in the Federal Register and HHS website (www.pandemicflu.gov)
– Presentations to ACIP and NVAC
– Public & stakeholder meetings
– Web based public engagement
• Additional tasks
– Validate population estimates
– Consider options for implementation
• When completed, the guidance will be “final interim”