Issue Number
267 August
22, 2001
CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE
- Reminder! Satellite teleconference on flu and
pneumococcal immunization in nursing homes on August 24
- Vaccine symposium set for September 22 at Children's
Hospital of Philadelphia
- Immunization seminar set for September 26 in Erie, Penn.
- Updated! "It's Federal Law: You Must Give Your Patients
Current Vaccine Information Statements (VISs)"
- CDC publishes report on human anthrax associated with an
epizootic among livestock in North Dakota
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(1)
August 22, 2001
REMINDER! SATELLITE TELECONFERENCE ON FLU AND PNEUMOCOCCAL IMMUNIZATION IN NURSING HOMES ON AUGUST 24
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), formerly calledHealth Care Financing Administration
(HCFA), will offer an interactive satellite teleconference on influenza and pneumococcal immunization in
nursing homes on August 24, 2001, from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time.
David Satcher, MD, PhD, Surgeon General of the United States, will introduce
the broadcast, which will include individual and panel discussions, as well as a
live question-and-answer session. Topics include the current disease burden and immunization rates in nursing homes,
examples of outbreaks where low rates of immunization were documented, administration and reimbursement of
influenza and pneumococcal vaccines, implementing standing orders programs, success stories, and federal regulations.
Continuing Education credit is available for participants.
To register for the satellite program, go to: http://cms.distributedclassroom.org/
For more information contact Jackie Harley at CMS at (410) 786-7222.
For a detailed list of additional upcoming immunization and hepatitis conferences and events, visit IAC's "Calendar of
Events" at http://www.immunize.org/calendar/
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(2)
August 22, 2001
VACCINE SYMPOSIUM SET FOR SEPTEMBER 22 AT CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia has scheduled "Answering Parents' Questions About Vaccines," a symposium
to help health care professionals respond to parents' concerns about vaccines, for September 22, 2001, at the
Stokes Auditorium in Philadelphia, Penn.
Speakers include Paul A. Offit, MD; Charlotte A. Moser, BS; William L. Atkinson, MD, MPH; Susan E. Coffin, MD; Huntly
Collins; Bruce Gellin, MD; Alan E. Kohrt, MD; John Iskander, MD; and Trevor Nelson. Topics will cover
vaccine safety, the roles of science and the media, and how to locate reliable
immunization resources.
The target audience is health care professionals. The registration fee of $50
includes breakfast, breaks, lunch, and syllabus materials. Registration is required.
Continuing education credit will be offered.
To register, go to: http://www.chop.edu/cme/vaccine/
For more information, contact Ms. Glorene Ford at (215) 590-5263.
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(3)
August 22, 2001
IMMUNIZATION SEMINAR SET FOR SEPTEMBER 26 IN ERIE, PENN.
The Erie County Department of Health has scheduled "Immunizations 2001. . . Not Just for Kids!" a seminar for
health care workers who provide immunization services, for September 26, 2001, at the Ambassador
Convention Center in Erie, Penn.
Speakers include William L. Atkinson, MD, MPH, and Donna Weaver, MSN, both from the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention; Paul Offit, MD, Vaccine Education Center, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia; and Howard
Nadworny, MD, St. Vincent's Health Center, Erie, Penn. Topics will cover immunization across the age span, including
pneumococcal vaccines, vaccine administration techniques, travel vaccines, and the Pennsylvania
school immunization law.
The target audience includes physicians, residents, nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, pharmacists, and
any health care personnel who either give or schedule immunizations or who set policy for
their offices, clinics, and communicable disease and infection control programs. The seminar is free but registration is required.
Continuing education credit will be offered.
For more information on registration, contact Linda Huebert or Angie King at
(814) 451-6700. You may also fax information to (814) 451-6767 or email Linda Huebert at
Lhuebert@ecdh.org
For a detailed list of additional upcoming immunization and hepatitis conferences and events, visit IAC's "Calendar of
Events" at http://www.immunize.org/calendar/
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(4)
August 22, 2001
UPDATED! "IT'S FEDERAL LAW: YOU MUST GIVE YOUR PATIENTS CURRENT VACCINE INFORMATION STATEMENTS (VISs)"
The Immunization Action Coalition has updated its educational piece "It's Federal Law: You Must Give Your
Patients Current Vaccine Information Statements (VISs)." The publication is a one-page update of an article written
by Neal A. Halsey, MD, Director of the Institute for Vaccine Safety, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health,
which originally appeared in NEEDLE TIPS in 1998.
The piece has been updated to include the current VIS dates for DTaP, hepatitis B, and pneumococcal conjugate vaccines.
To get the most current version of this important resource, go to: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/2027law.htm
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(5)
August 17, 2001
CDC PUBLISHES REPORT ON HUMAN ANTHRAX ASSOCIATED WITH AN EPIZOOTIC AMONG LIVESTOCK IN NORTH DAKOTA
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published an article titled "Human Anthrax Associated With
an Epizootic Among Livestock--North Dakota, 2000," in the August 17, 2001, issue of Morbidity and Mortality
Weekly Report (MMWR). The article reports on a case of cutaneous anthrax in a North Dakota resident in August 2000, the
first known case in the United States since 1992.
The Editorial Note states: "Because this epizootic may continue in North Dakota and because anthrax cases among
livestock occur each year, health-care providers should consider the possibility of anthrax when
evaluating patients with characteristic skin lesions, particularly if the exposure
history includes handling animals with confirmed or suspected anthrax. . . Any
person who handles carcasses of animals that have died or are suspected to have died of anthrax should contact their health-care
provider if they develop a skin lesion. Although veterinarians, agricultural workers, and laboratory
workers might be at increased risk for B. anthracis infection during these epizootics, the risk is low and anthrax vaccination
is not recommended."
To obtain the full text of this article, go to: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5032a1.htm
To obtain a camera-ready (PDF format) copy of this issue of MMWR, go to: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5032.pdf
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