Under what conditions may we transport COVID-19 vaccines? Is transport of a partial vial or predrawn syringe ever permissible?

Although routine transportation of vaccines to different facilities is not generally recommended, there are times when this is necessary. CDC recommends transporting COVID-19 vaccine in unopened vials or manufacturer-filled syringes (MFS) and always with a continuous temperature monitoring device to ensure adherence to authorized storage times and temperatures.

Details are provided in the CDC Vaccine Storage and Handling Toolkit addendum on COVID-19 and mpox vaccines: www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/admin/storage/toolkit/storage-handling-toolkit.pdf.

There may be instances when the only option is to transport vaccine in a predrawn syringe. CDC refers to the U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP) guidance for transporting predrawn vaccine in syringes in the USP COVID-19 Vaccine Toolkit: Operational Considerations for Healthcare Practitioners. The complete document provides detailed guidance on COVID-19 vaccine transport and is available for download at no charge from this site: www.usp.org/covid-19/vaccine-handling-toolkit.