Issue
Number 311
May 6, 2002
CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE
- VAERS reports can
now be completed and submitted online
- Children's Vaccine
Program at PATH publishes paper on global
immunization issues
- OSHA issues bulletin
on work-related international travel and
infectious disease
- Good going!
Sixty-one Congress members signed the letter
supporting more immunization funding
- NASTAD offers guide
on viral hepatitis within HIV/AIDS programs
- CDC publishes report
on surveillance of wild and vaccine-derived
poliovirus in 2000-2001
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May 6, 2002
VAERS REPORTS CAN NOW BE COMPLETED AND SUBMITTED ONLINE
Next time you need to submit an adverse event report to
the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System
(VAERS), you can do so online. VAERS, a
cooperative program of the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) and the
Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has announced a
secure, web-based adverse event reporting
form. The identity of the vaccine recipient will
not be made available to the
public.
To report adverse events electronically, follow these
steps:
- Go to:
www.vaers.org
- Click on "Vaers Web Submission" in the
lefthand column
- Click on "Enter VAERS Data" in the
lefthand column
The new electronic form is as user-friendly
as any paper form, but for those who prefer the
latter, hard copies of
the VAERS form (PDF format, 23K) can be printed from the
VAERS home page at:
http://www.vaers.org
If you have questions or would like to
request that a VAERS form be sent to you by mail,
call the VAERS 24-hour
information line at (800) 822-7967 or email
info@vaers.org
Completed forms may be sent by mail to:
Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System
P.O. Box 1100
Rockville, MD 20849-1100
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May 6, 2002
CHILDREN'S VACCINE PROGRAM AT PATH PUBLISHES PAPER ON
GLOBAL IMMUNIZATION ISSUES
The Children's Vaccine Program at PATH (CVP) has published
its Occasional Paper #5, "The Case for
Childhood Immunization." Written by CVP Director
Mark Kane, M.D., M.P.H., and CVP Advocacy,
Communications, and Training Specialist
Heidi Lasher, this 15-page paper provides an
excellent overview of immunization need and
potential worldwide.
"The Case for Childhood Immunization" is a beautifully
designed document about a not-so-beautiful
topic. In addition to several moving photos of
people in different countries, nine charts and
graphs bring home the magnitude
of, for instance, "Global Mortality from Vaccine
Preventable Diseases (1999)" and the
regional breakdown of "34 Million Children Not
Fully Immunized (1999)." One-paragraph sidebars
about diseases tell you quickly and memorably the
main facts that we all should know about the worst
infections and the deaths and disability that
they cause.
Along with other partners in the Global Alliance for
Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), CVP aims to
improve immunization among "the 74 poorest
countries of the world. . . to protect an additional 34
million children and save approximately 3
million lives per year."
To print a camera-ready copy (PDF format) of "The Case for
Childhood Immunization," go to:
http://www.childrensvaccine.org/html/ip_advocacy.htm#occp5
To learn more about the Children's Vaccine Program at PATH,
go to:
http://www.childrensvaccine.org
If you are unable to print PDF files, you may request
copies of the paper by email at
info@childrensvaccine.org
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May 6, 2002
OSHA ISSUES BULLETIN ON WORK-RELATED INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL
AND INFECTIOUS DISEASE
On April 17, 2002, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA), of the U.S.
Department of Labor, released a new Technical
Information Bulletin titled "Safety and Health
During International Travel."
According to the Bulletin, 35 percent of international
travel by U.S. residents in 2000 was
work-related, and an increasing amount of all
international travel has been to countries in
which infectious disease is prevalent,
including hepatitis A and B, yellow fever, rabies,
poliomyelitis, and meningococcal disease.
Therefore, business travelers should consider risk of
exposure to infectious disease as an
occupational hazard and take appropriate
preventive measures, including vaccination.
The nonprofit health policy research group
Partnership for Prevention publicly commended OSHA
for issuing this Bulletin and raising employer and
employee awareness of the risks of exposure to infectious
disease while abroad.
In a press release, OSHA Administrator John L. Henshaw
stated, "Our new technical information bulletin
will help international travelers take care
of their health while they take care of business."
The third of three recommendations at the end of the
Bulletin reads as follows:
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U.S. workers who travel abroad should be familiar with the
infectious diseases to which they may be
exposed. With this knowledge, they may modify
their behavior to avoid contracting infection,
obtain necessary medication and
vaccinations before travel, and recognize symptoms
of disease.
******************************
To print a camera-ready copy (PDF format) of "Safety and
Health During International Travel," go to:
http://www.osha.gov/dts/tib/tib_data/tib20020412.pdf
For further information or to request a mailed copy of the
Bulletin, call OSHA at (202) 693-2095.
For CDC travel health recommendations, including
immunizations and other preventive measures, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/travel
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May 6, 2002
GOOD GOING! SIXTY-ONE CONGRESS MEMBERS SIGNED THE LETTER
SUPPORTING MORE IMMUNIZATION FUNDING
To those who called or wrote their representative in
Congress last month, you made a difference! When
we informed you that Congress members had
an opportunity to unite behind a $65 million
immunization increase for 2003
(see IAC EXPRESS #308 at
http://www.immunize.org/genr.d/issue308.htm), only
35 had agreed to sign a letter indicating
their support to the Appropriations Subcommittee
on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education. A few days after our "Action Needed"
message went out, that number reached 61.
Following is the list of Congress members who signed the
letter:
Spencer Bachus (AL)
John Baldacci (ME)
Tammy Baldwin (WI)
Tom Barrett (WI)
Ken Bentsen (TX)
Howard Berman (CA)
David Bonior (MI)
Robert A. Brady (PA)
Corrine Brown (FL)
Julia Carson (IN)
John Conyers, Jr. (MI)
Joe Crowley (NY)
Elijah Cummings (MD)
Danny Davis (IL)
John Dingell (MI)
Eliot Engel (NY)
Anna Eshoo (CA)
Chaka Fattah (PA)
Harold Ford (TN)
Bart Gordon (TN)
Gene Green (TX)
Joel Hefley (CO)
Ruben Hinojosa (TX)
Steny H. Hoyer (MD)
Dale Kildee (MI)
Gerald Kleczka (WI)
Jim Langevin (RI)
Rick Larsen (WA)
John Lewis (GA)
Zoe Lofgren (CA)
Bill Luther (MN)
Robert Matsui (CA)
Betty McCollum (MN)
Michael McNulty (NY)
Juanita Millender-McDonald (CA)
Patsy Mink (HI)
Dennis Moore (KS)
Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC)
Doug Ose (CA)
Major Owens (NY)
Frank Pallone (NJ)
Bill Pascrell, Jr. (NJ)
Chip Pickering (MS)
Charlie Rangel (NY)
Lynn Rivers (MI)
Marge Roukema (NJ)
Marge Roukema (NJ)
Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA)
Loretta Sanchez (CA)
Bernie Sanders (VT)
Adam Schiff (CA)
Ronnie Shows (MS)
Adam Smith (WA)
Vic Snyder (AR)
Ted Strickland (OH)
Ellen Tauscher (CA)
Tom Udall (NM)
Henry Waxman (CA)
Robert Wexler (FL)
Roger Wicker (MS)
Al Wynn (MD)
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May 6, 2002
NASTAD OFFERS GUIDE ON VIRAL HEPATITIS WITHIN HIV/AIDS
PROGRAMS
The National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS
Directors (NASTAD) has published the first chapter
of a guide for HIV/AIDS programs that plan
to add viral hepatitis prevention, treatment,
counseling, and more to
their current activities.
This 20-page chapter, titled "Starting Up: First Steps
Towards the Integration of Viral Hepatitis into
HIV/AIDS/STD Programs," covers topics ranging from needs
assessment to securing funding.
As stated on page one, "The existence of a well-developed
HIV/AIDS/STD infrastructure presents a
prime opportunity to address viral hepatitis
efficiently and effectively. . . . Nonetheless, the introduction
of such a broad new area of focus into
HIV/AIDS/STD programs does not `just happen' but
rather entails a sometimes complex and lengthy
process." This clearly written guide promises to clarify
and simplify that process considerably.
To print a camera-ready copy (PDF format) of "Starting Up:
First Steps Towards the Integration of Viral
Hepatitis into HIV/AIDS/STD Programs," go
to:
http://www.nastad.org/pro_viral_hepatitis.asp?menu=pro
For further information, contact Laurie Schowalter,
M.P.H., NASTAD Viral Hepatitis Program Manager,
by phone at (202) 434-8090 or email at
lschowalter@nastad.org
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May 6, 2002
CDC PUBLISHES REPORT ON SURVEILLANCE OF WILD AND VACCINE-DERIVED POLIOVIRUS
IN 2000-2001
On May 3, 2002, the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) published "Laboratory
Surveillance for Wild Poliovirus and
Vaccine-Derived Poliovirus, 2000-2001" in the
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). The
Global Laboratory Network for Poliomyelitis Eradication
was established by the World Health
Organization (WHO) after the 1988 World Health
Assembly resolution to
eradicate poliomyelitis.
The Editorial Note to the article reads in part as
follows:
******************************
During 2000-2001, the laboratory network initiated genomic
sequencing of all wild poliovirus isolates and
expanded its mandate to include
surveillance for VDPV [vaccine-derived poliovirus], which preliminary
evidence indicates is rare. Laboratory
surveillance conducted by the network documented
the interruption of indigenous transmission in
the Western Pacific Region, the elimination of poliovirus
lineages in remaining reservoir countries, and the
importation of poliovirus into polio-free countries.
******************************
To obtain the complete text of the article online, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5117a2.htm
To obtain a camera-ready (PDF format) copy of this issue
of MMWR, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5117.pdf
HOW TO OBTAIN A FREE ELECTRONIC SUBSCRIPTION TO THE MMWR:
To obtain a free electronic subscription to the "Morbidity
and Mortality Weekly Report" (MMWR), visit
CDC's MMWR website at:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr
Select "Free MMWR Subscription" from the
menu at the left of the screen. Once you
have submitted the required information, weekly
issues of the MMWR and all new ACIP statements
(published as MMWR's "Recommendations and
Reports") will arrive
automatically by email.
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