Issue
Number 336
September 16, 2002
CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE
- Fully revised! IAC's indispensable Directory of
Immunization Resources now more useful than ever
- New! CMS releases 2002-03 Q&A guide for Medicare
coverage of flu and pneumococcal vaccines
- Now available! NIH Consensus Development
Conference Statement on the Management of Hepatitis C: 2002
- National Immunization Program seeks senior
medical epidemiologist to lead its Safety Signals Team
- New positions now open in the Program Support
Branch, Immunization Services Division, National Immunization Program
- International Symposium on Viral Hepatitis and
Liver Disease set for April 6-10, 2003, in Sydney, Australia
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September 16, 2002
FULLY REVISED! IAC'S INDISPENSABLE DIRECTORY OF IMMUNIZATION RESOURCES NOW
MORE USEFUL THAN EVER
Health professionals and anyone else who works in immunization will be
delighted to know that the Immunization Action Coalition has updated its
Directory of Immunization Resources to include the latest in staff- and
patient-education materials. Best of all, many materials are free on the web
or with just a toll-free phone call!
Based on information supplied by government and nonprofit organizations,
professional associations, and private industry, the newly revised Directory
is packed with information vital to health professionals, their patients,
and policymakers. It includes updated phone numbers and web addresses for
more than 350 individual listings of print materials, websites, videos,
organizations, and toll-free hotlines.
Conveniently organized into 21 chapters, the Directory covers a broad array
of topics. Examples include resources for childhood, adolescent, and adult
immunization; contacts at state health departments and the federal
government; and resources for vaccine safety.
In addition to the listings, the Directory contains information for ordering
more than 165 print and video education materials from the Immunization
Action Coalition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and many
other organizations. Most of the print materials are free and can be
endlessly reprinted free of charge.
Updated throughout the year with new resources and information, the HTML
version of the revised directory is available at:
http://www.immunize.org/resources/contents.htm
The camera-ready (PDF version) of the revised directory is available at:
http://www.immunize.org/resources/resource.pdf
WARNING: The PDF format of the entire publication is a very large file; some
printers are unable to print a file of this size. For some helpful
tips on downloading and printing PDF files, click here:
http://www.immunize.org/nslt.d/tips.htm
To save yourself the time of downloading and printing the 54-page Directory,
consider ordering printed copies for you and the staff who work in
immunization in your health care setting. The print version is a bargain at
$4 a copy when you buy five or more copies. You can order one copy for $10;
two for $13; three for $15; four for $17; five for $20. The price includes
postage and handling for orders shipped within the United States.
There are three ways to order print copies of the Directory:
- Online (credit card only; U.S. addresses
only) at:
https://www.immunize.org/resources/index.htm#ordernow
- Fax (credit card or purchase order) at:
(651) 647-9131.
- Mail (check, credit card, or purchase
order) to: Immunization Action Coalition, 1573 Selby Ave., Ste. 234, St.
Paul, MN 55104. Include your complete mailing information and phone
number. No abbreviations, please.
If you are placing an order from outside the
United States, call IAC at (651) 647-9009 to determine additional shipping
cost.
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September 16, 2002
NEW! CMS RELEASES 2002-03 Q&A GUIDE FOR MEDICARE COVERAGE OF FLU AND
PNEUMOCOCCAL VACCINES
If you vaccinate adults under Medicare, the newly released 39-page "2002-03
Immunizers' Question & Answer Guide to Medicare Coverage of Influenza
and Pneumococcal Vaccinations" is a must-have publication.
Developed by the Center for Medicare & Medicare Services (CMS), formerly
known as the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA), and intended for
providers, the guide "includes information on the vaccination benefit,
immunization guidelines, coverage policy, payment policy, mass immunization,
centralized billing, and managed care. CMS also provides step-by-step
instructions ... and a Video explaining how to bill Medicare (roster or
provider) for these vaccinations," according to CMS's Influenza/Pneumococcal
Campaign web page.
To access the CMS Influenza/Pneumococcal Campaign web page, go to:
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/preventiveservices/2.asp
For more information, contact Jackie Harley at
jharley@cms.hhs.gov or (410)
786-7222.
For a camera-ready (PDF) version of the Q&A guide and the step-by-step
billing instructions, go to:
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/preventiveservices/2i.pdf
For a free copy of the 20-minute billing video, contact Jackie Harley at
jharley@cms.hhs.gov or (410)
786-7222.
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September 16, 2002
NOW AVAILABLE! NIH CONSENSUS DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE STATEMENT ON THE
MANAGEMENT OF HEPATITIS C: 2002
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has made the "Consensus Development
Conference Statement on the Management of Hepatitis C: 2002" available on
the Office of Medical Applications of Research (OMAR) web page.
The consensus development conference, held June 10-12, 2002, "was convened
to provide an update to a 1997 conference on the same topic. This consensus
panel broke away from its 1997 predecessors by expanding the scope of
patients eligible for treatment to include those who use injected drugs,
consume alcohol, suffer from co-morbid conditions such as depression, or who
are coinfected with HIV. Similarly, panelists cautioned against the
exclusion of children and older adults from treatment and further research,"
according to an NIH news release, dated June 12, 2002.
To view or download the statement, go to:
http://consensus.nih.gov/cons/116/091202116cdc_statement.htm
To view or download a camera-ready (PDF) version of the statement, go to:
http://consensus.nih.gov/cons/116/Hepc091202.pdf
Videotapes of the "Consensus Development Conference on Management of
Hepatitis C: 2002" are available for purchase through September 20, 2002
only. The price for the set of 11 VHS videotapes is $140 plus shipping
($5-$12 depending on shipping address). The price may drop if enough orders
are taken. To find out more about placing an order, contact the Consensus
Development Program Information Center at (888) 644-2667, or via email at
consensus_statements@mail.nih.gov
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September 16, 2002
NATIONAL IMMUNIZATION PROGRAM SEEKS SENIOR MEDICAL EPIDEMIOLOGIST TO LEAD
ITS SAFETY SIGNALS TEAM
The Immunization Safety Branch, National Immunization Program, Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA, announced that it is
recruiting for a senior medical epidemiologist to lead its Safety Signals
Team. The Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) is making the information
available here as a service to IAC EXPRESS readers. The announcement states:
************************
The skills sought include: leadership, scientific curiosity, established
research track record, and willingness to work for the public good. U.S.
citizenship is not a requirement.
The Safety Signals Team currently consists of approximately 10 members and
oversees three major vaccine safety infrastructures:
- Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS):
the national passive surveillance system in the U.S., operated jointly
with the US FDA and a contractor. In operation since 1990 and receives
[approximately] 13,000 reports/year.
- Clinical Immunization Safety Assessment (CISA)
centers: a network of tertiary medical centers specializing in
standardized clinical evaluation and management of persons with
interesting vaccine adverse events (e.g., from VAERS). CISA was
established in 2001 to serve as a new clinical subspecialty to advance
knowledge of immunization safety at the individual level.
- The Brighton Collaboration: an
international voluntary collaboration to develop and implement
standardized case definitions for adverse events following immunizations.
The Collaboration was launched in 2000 and aims to develop 50-100
case definitions over the next few years.
The Immunization Safety Branch, with
[approximately] 40 staff and fellows, is among the largest foci for this
type of research worldwide. Recent projects ranged from rotavirus vaccine
intussusception, thimerosal and neurodevelopment disorders, to safety of
anthrax and smallpox vaccines.
If interested, please contact Robert (Bob) Chen at
bchen@cdc.gov
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September 16, 2002
NEW POSITIONS NOW OPEN IN THE PROGRAM SUPPORT BRANCH, IMMUNIZATION SERVICES
DIVISION, NATIONAL IMMUNIZATION PROGRAM
The National Immunization Program (NIP) distributed information about the
following position openings to NIP grantees. The Immunization Action
Coalition (IAC) is reprinting it here as a service to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The closing date for the positions is
Tuesday, September 24, 2002. The information follows:
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The Program Support Branch, Immunization Services Division, National
Immunization Program is expanding. We will soon be announcing several new
positions [the positions were announced August 28, 2002] through "Vacancy
Announcements" as Public Health Analyst/Public Health Advisor positions. In
order to attract a wide range of skilled applicants, the jobs will be
announced as GS 12/13 positions. This allows GS 13 staff to apply and
affords opportunity for promotion potential to those in lower grades. We
anticipate at least two separate vacancy announcements with one or more
persons being hired from each . . .
Separate positions will be established for VFC consultation, vaccine
management, and vaccine stockpile/influenza planning. There will be
extensive responsibilities in almost all areas of vaccine management which
include: ordering, distribution, cold chain, and evaluation. Project Officer
oversight will include extensive work with the Procurement and Grants
Office, advising on vaccine contracts, and fiscal budget analysis.
Interaction with grantees and vaccine manufacturers occurs on a daily basis.
Duties include responsibility for or input into the approval of all vaccine
orders placed through CDC's ordering system as well as work on vaccine
trends, vaccine forecasting, and vaccine accountability. The annual vaccine
budget approximates $1 billion per year.
A number of other responsibilities include but are not limited to linking
population data with ACIP schedule recommendations and vaccine forecasting,
Biologic Surveillance Reporting, compilation of requirements for school and
day care attendance, and extensive correspondence.
Knowledge of VACMAN is beneficial. Excellent communication skills and
analytical reasoning are pre-requisites and skill in the application of
computer software programs is most helpful.
These are high profile positions with a myriad of important
responsibilities. We encourage your consideration of these exciting
opportunities.
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To view the Public Health Analyst position announcement, click here:
http://www2.cdc.gov/hrmo/viewdetail.asp?AnnouncementNumber=1-02-686
To view the Public Health Advisor position announcement, click here:
http://www2.cdc.gov/hrmo/viewdetail.asp?AnnouncementNumber=1-02-687
For further information, contact H. Lynn Carroll at
hlc1@cdc.gov or at (404) 639-8544.
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September 16, 2002
INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON VIRAL HEPATITIS & LIVER DISEASE SET FOR APRIL
6-10, 2003, IN SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
The Eleventh International Symposium on Viral Hepatitis & Liver Disease will
be held April 6-10, 2003, at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre.
For more information on the symposium program, trade exhibit, and
registration, go to:
http://www.tourhosts.com.au/isvhld
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