Immunization

In addition to overall concerns about COVID-19 vaccines patients may have stronger fears about the second vaccine dose since it is often accompanied with more adverse effects.

During a session at the NACDS 2021 Annual Meeting, Scott Gottlieb, MD, former commissioner of the FDA from 2017 to 2019, provided an overview of where the country is heading in its response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The proposal would also distribute 1000 additional physician residency slots to hospitals in rural areas in an effort to address gaps in equitable care.

Experts Suzanne Soliman, PharmD, BCMAS, and Sally Arif, PharmD, BCPS, BCCP, discussed their experiences and advice for handling vaccine hesitancy in part 1 of a 2-part interview on the topic.

Due to the success of its COVID-19 vaccination clinics hosted at sites such as churches and community centers across the country, Walgreens announced that it will now activate mobile clinics in Chicago, Illinois.

Although many patients are hesitant about the COVID-19 vaccines, Humphreys said pharmacists are perfectly positioned to provide education.

This week on Pharmacy Times, there are a number of important topics that will be covered and posted throughout the week.

Although the CDC and FDA have lifted the pause on Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine, Humphreys said the vaccine now comes with a warning label, and ongoing safety reviews will be paramount to ensure its continued safety.

If gut-imprinted immune cells are diluted in comparison to immune cells triggered by other parts of the body, there could be implications for the oral-based COVID-19 vaccines currently under development.

The efforts of pharmacists to keep their doors open during the pandemic, build COVID-19 testing sites, and prepare for and administer COVID-19 vaccinations took extraordinary investment and determination.

The data found fewer adverse effects in the general population with both the Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca vaccines than reported in trials.

Preliminary study results showed no safety concerns among pregnant women that received Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.

Bipartisan legislation has been introduced in the US Senate that would give millions of Medicare patients in medically underserved communities access to critical primary health care services delivered by pharmacists across the country.

Historic COVID-19 vaccination efforts have illustrated the value of pharmacists, reinforcing many pharmacy students' desire to be a part of the profession.

Pharmacy Times® interviewed Scott J. Knoer, MS, PharmD, FASHP, the EVP and CEO of APhA, on how the recently introduced Pharmacy and Medically Underserved Area Enhancement Act may impact pharmacy and health care outlooks.

As new variants of the virus come to rise, it is crucial to continue to address the safety concerns with mass COVID-19 immunizations during the pandemic as well as provide solutions to reduce the exposure and spread of the virus.

For World Immunization Week, Pharmacy Times® interviewed Nurisha Wade, MBA, VP of Global Healthcare Quality & Safety Center of Excellence at US Pharmacopeia (USP), and Farah Towfic, PharmD, MBA, director, CEO of Operations at USP, on USP’s COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Toolkit.

Pharmacy Times® interviewed Scott J. Knoer, MS, PharmD, FASHP, the EVP and CEO of the American Pharmacists Association, on the Pharmacy and Medically Underserved Area Enhancement Act that was recently introduced in Congress.

The study found that more than 10% of participants who were previously infected with SARS-CoV-2 (seropositive) became reinfected, compared with new infections in 50% of participants who had not been previously infected (seronegative).

A new service connects community pharmacies with health care systems to support the delivery of health care products and services through crowdsourcing.

A CDC panel voted to add a warning label to the vaccine regarding rare cases of cerebral venous sinus thrombosis.

Individuals who had COVID-19 and recovered had a robust antibody response after the first mRNA vaccine dose, but little immune benefit after the second dose.

The decrease was lower in children under 2 years of age and recovered quickly in that group, but it remained persistent in older children.

Tapping techs as immunizers opens up greater visibility and new source of health care labor.

The researchers’ analysis was based on a large representative sample survey carried out in November to December 2020, which examined a range of factors that previous studies had found to be related to hesitancy about getting vaccinated against COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created challenges and opportunities, and this requires agility and flexibility.

There have now been approximately 70,000 pregnant people vaccinated against COVID-19 with no evidence of harm.

Pharmacy Times® interviewed Amy Snyder, a member at Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, on the implications for pharmacy of mandated COVID-19 vaccinations in higher education institutions.

Just as pharmacists have been on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kristen Lund, CPhT, a technician at Hy-Vee Pharmacy in Harlan, Iowa, said technicians have taken on greater responsibilities and have become more involved in patient care.

Community pharmacists should consider leaning on their specialty pharmacist peers, where available, as we continue to navigate the new, more virtual normal and attempt to expand these types of services in the future.