Pfizer, the multinational pharmaceutical company, would possibly be the first in the United States to seek regulatory approval for a COVID-19 vaccine, but even if its vaccine is licensed, the company would possibly face more demanding situations when distributing it.
This is because the Pfizer vaccine can be purchased from the refrigeration systems found in the typical doctor’s office; Instead, it requires special ultra-low-temperature freezers that can buy the drugs at about minus 94 degrees.
The administration formula is complex and requires the use of a “cooler” as you can buy 1,000 to 5,000 vaccines for 10 days at lower degrees.
“The shipper will use real-time temperature tracking devices, tracking and GPS technology to enable 24/7 traffic tracking,” brian Gleeson, senior global sourcing control manager and product portfolio, said at an assembly convened through the Advisory Committee. immunization practices at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Pfizer said in a statement that it is supplying existing vaccines to at least 165 countries, adding: “We are confident of our ability to deliver and purchase doses to designated destination governments, depending on shipping and garage requirements. Some products. “
Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, expressed her fear of the feasibility of Pfizer’s garage needs: the vaccine can exist in a normal refrigerator for about 24 hours.
“The complexities of this vaccine management and garage plan will have a primary effect on our ability to manage vaccines efficiently,” Messonnier said at the same meeting.
“Most pharmacies, peak clinics, peak positions might not have one of those ultra low temperature freezers on hand,” said Dr. Erin Fox, senior manager of data and services. in pharmacy at the University of Utah Health.
Pfizer said it would team up with UPS to create cellular “freeze farms” involving 48,000 vaccines and strategically located across the country for immediate distribution.
“It’s one thing to make sure you have a position to buy it, but how do you get there?” Fox asked. “Do we have the trucks, do we have the ability to keep them warm while they get to one of those other freezers? Because it’s less difficult said than done. “
Vaccine specialists interviewed through ABC News said this could lead to distribution disparities.
“The more devices you need, the more doses that can be stored in the vaccine will be limited,” said Dr. Anna Durbin, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Center for Research on Immunizations.
“Let’s put it this way: It doesn’t make it easy,” said Dr. Dan Barouch, an immunologist and director of the Virology and Vaccine Research Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
Pfizer’s ultra-cold garage needs contrast with those of other brands, the preset garage and distribution program that is a component of Operation Warp Speed.
According to Paul Mango, deputy director of policy at the Department of Health and Human Services, companies participating in Operation Warp Speed will have their vaccines distributed through a corporate medical source and distribution called McKesson.
“This includes the garage and shipping needs that we think we have for vaccines,” Mango said. “There is an exception to this, and it is Pfizer. Array . . . Pfizer is doing its thing. “
Operation Warp Speed features the Modern Pfizer pair, which is also featuring a new generation of similar vaccine based on molecules called mRNA. Modern has yet to submit plans for specialized freezing requirements.
It is incredible to preserve well vaccines, some more vulnerable to temperatures, others more sensitive to mild ones, to maintain their effects.
Some vaccines require “cold chain” storage, a phasing strategy with temperature controlled boxes of other capacities. The links in this chain get smaller and smaller at the next location until the vaccine reaches its destination. Any break in the chain of origin can ruin the vaccine.
“Pfizer is a very delightful vaccine manufacturer, so it takes great delight in knowing what challenging situations are likely to present itself in the future,” said Durbin.
A bloodless chain distribution formula that keeps vaccines at minus 94 degrees would be the most bloodless in widespread use, and that’s something, Barouch said, much less difficult to complete in urban infrastructure than in rural, without communicating about shipments.
“Think about expanding a vaccine and taking it to every small town in Africa, so in many cases there are no freezers,” Barouch said. “It’s obviously difficult to take a vaccine to an area, or even to a clinic, that doesn’t have that equipment. “
Dave Harrison, MD, is a pediatric cardiology researcher in Boston and a contributor to the ABC News Medical Unit. Sony Salzman is the coordinating producer for the unit.
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