Sanofi Pasteur recently received licensure of Fluzone® High-Dose (Influenza Virus Vaccine), which the vaccine maker says is designed to generate a more robust immune response to influenza in people 65 years of age and older. Data show people 65 years of age and older are more likely to die or be hospitalized from influenza and its complications than younger adults. While the 65-plus age group only represents about 15 percent of the US population, it accounts for 90 percent of all deaths due to seasonal influenza and its complications. More information about Fluzone® High-Dose Vaccine is available below or read the Fluzone Brochure containing full prescribing information.
Influenza Disease Information People 65 years of age and older are more likely to die or be hospitalized from influenza and its complications than younger adults.1-3 In fact, while those 65 years of age and older only represent 15% of the US population, they account, on average, for 90% of all deaths due to seasonal influenza and its complications. Recent studies show that people 65 years of age and older have weakened immune systems and do not respond to the standard-dose vaccine as well as younger adults.4Fluzone High-Dose Vaccine Fluzone High-Dose vaccine wasdesigned specifically to generate a more robust immune response to influenza in people 65 years of age and older. See attached product brochure and Prescribing Information (PI) for more information regarding Fluzone High-Dose vaccine.Providers have access to Fluzone High-Dose vaccine for the 2010-2011 season and can order the vaccine through http://www.vaccineshoppe.com. Indication Fluzone High-Dose vaccine is indicated for active immunization of persons 65 years of age and older against influenza disease caused by influenza virus subtypes A and type B contained in the vaccine. This indication is based on the immune response elicited by Fluzone High-Dose vaccine; there have been no controlled clinical studies demonstrating a decrease in influenza disease after vaccination with Fluzone High-Dose vaccine.Safety Information The most common local and systemic adverse reactions to Fluzone High-Dose vaccine include soreness, pain, and swelling at the vaccination site; fever, headache, malaise, and myalgia. Other adverse reactions may occur. Fluzone High-Dose vaccine should not be administered to anyone with a history of hypersensitivity to any vaccine component, including eggs and egg products. Fluzone High-Dose vaccine should not be administered to individuals who have a prior history of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). Vaccination with Fluzone High-Dose vaccine may not protect all individualsBefore administering Fluzone High-Dose vaccine, please see accompanying brochure with full Prescribing Information.
Safe Kids North Carolina along with law enforcement agencies across North Carolina, the State Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration are sponsoring a statewide prescription medication take-back program called Operation Medicine Drop to prevent accidental poisonings and abuse. Details available at: http://www.ncdoi.com/OSFM/SafeKids/sk_OperationMedicineDrop.asp.
North Carolinians who are unable to afford their prescription medicines can now get them for free, Attorney General Roy Cooper, the North Carolina Association of Free Clinics, and NC MedAssist announced on Wednesday. The program, which began as a pilot in March 2009, has been expanded to serve residents statewide. Administered by MedAssist, the program uses a mail-order central pharmacy to provide free brand name and generic drugs, which are donated by participating pharmaceutical companies.
Eligibility requirements for North Carolina residents include:
Adults and children living at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level.
Adults and children who do not qualify for: Medicaid, Veterans Administration or private health insurance.
Medicare Part D participants who fall in the “donut hole” may be eligible after consultation with NC MedAssist.
Eligible North Carolina residents can enroll in the program by downloading an enrollment packet from the NC MedAssist website at http://www.medassist.org/, or by calling 1-866-331-1348. Eligible residents living in Forsyth, Stokes, Davie or Yadkin counties should enroll in the program by calling MedAid at 336-714-2359.
Timothy C.Flynn, MD, a dermatologist with Cary Skin Center, made a presentation to 120 girls at St. Mary’s School in Raleigh on January 20 on the dangers of indoor tanning. If you would like to develop a similar program for your community, please contact Alan Skipper at the North Carolina Dermatology Association at 1-800-722-1350.
Together Rx Access™ is a program designed to help uninsured individuals access the medicines they need to take care of their health (16% of NC’s population lacks healthcare coverage). Sponsored by many of the nation’s leading pharmaceutical companies, Together Rx Access™ is a free prescription savings program that helps eligible individuals and families save on hundreds of brand-name prescription products found in neighborhood pharmacies. More than 67,000 North Carolina residents are already Together Rx Access™ cardholders. Individuals may be eligible for the Together Rx Access™ Card if they do not qualify for Medicare, do not have public or private prescription coverage, and have a household income of up to $45,000 for a single person or $90,000 for a family of four (income eligibility is adjusted for family size). More information is available at http://www.togetherrxaccess.com/ or by calling 1-800-250-2839. Physician practices wanting to receive a supply of enrollment materials may visit http://www.togetherrxaccessonline.com/order/.
Vaccine maker Sanofi Pasteur is offering an unbranded form for use by physicians to help parents keep track of a child’s vaccinations. The form includes a section to record when a vaccination is given, or is scheduled to be given, and a table of recommended immunizations for persons 11 through 18 years of age, based on CDC guidelines, which can be viewed at: http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/spec-grps/preteens-adol.htm. To order forms for your patients, please contact Jill Blalock at jill.blalock@sanofipasteur.com.
North Carolina is among seven states that have received the nation’s highest public health readiness ratings issued by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). Arkansas, Delaware, New York, Oklahoma, Texas and Vermont joined with North Carolina in meeting nine of the 10 readiness indicators as established by Trust. More information about TFAH and the report are found at http://www.healthyamericans.org/. Information concerning North Carolina’s preparedness efforts is available at http://www.rabies.ncdhhs.gov/epi/phpr/ and http://www.flu.nc.gov/.
The North Carolina State Health Director issued a fish consumption advisory on Wednesday for walleye and largemouth bass in Lake Gaston, which is located between north-central North Carolina and south-central Virginia. Elevated levels of mercury have recently been found in walleye in this lake. Previous studies have found elevated levels of mercury in largemouth bass in all waters of North Carolina, including Lake Gaston. The advisory recommends that pregnant women, nursing women, women who may become pregnant, and children under age 15 should not eat any walleye or largemouth bass from Lake Gaston. Other people should not eat more than two meals a month of walleye or largemouth bass from Lake Gaston. The advisory was issued because there is an increased risk of adverse effects to the developing brain of the unborn babies of pregnant women who eat fish contaminated with mercury. Young children may also be at risk of adverse neurological effects from eating fish contaminated with mercury.
The North Carolina Division of Public Health (DPH) analyzed the environmental data and fish sampling data from Lake Gaston, and recommends additional fish sampling in the lake as soon as possible for other fish species. Fish sampling is also recommended in Kerr Lake, Roanoke Rapids Lake, and the Roanoke River below Lake Gaston. Once the data is analyzed, DPH will decide whether additional fish consumption advisories are necessary.
On June 16, 1909, at the NCMS annual meeting in Asheville, delegates gave their blessing to the formation of what would become the North Carolina Public Health program. That event was recalled as the North Carolina Public Health Association held its 2009 Annual Educational Conference and Trade Show in Asheville, September 30-October 2, 2009. This year’s program honored the long-standing close association the state’s public health effort has enjoyed with the NCMS and its physician leaders. Some of the key early milestones include:
1879-30 years after he helped found the NCMS, Solomon Sampson Satchwell, MD, becomes the first President of the NC Board of Health.
1908-Past NCMS President Richard Henry Lewis, MD, elected President of the American Public Health Association
1909-Seeds planted for the formation of the NC Public Health Program
1910-Asheville City Health Department established, and L.B. McBrayer, MD served as its part-time health officer. The Buncombe County Medical Society donated furniture for the department, which had an operating budget of $8,000.
1911-NCMS and State Board of Health jointly recommend a uniform basis of compensation for health officers for adoption by County Societies.
1911-The first full-time public health department in NC opens in Guilford County.
1912-The first rural health department established in Robeson County
1918-Strong public health advocate and hookworm eradication pioneer J.L. Nicholson, MD, dies. He was the first physician in Onslow County.
1940s-Ham Stevens, MD, becomes Health Director for the Onslow-Pender County Health District and works at branch offices and clinics in Burgaw, Richlands, Holly Ridge, Camp Lejeune and Jacksonville.
The NCMS congratulates the NC Public Health Service and its leaders for their excellent record of service to the people of North Carolina during the past century. During its 2009 Annual Meeting, the NC Public Health Association elected Mike Reavis of Yadkinville as its new President.
The Commonwealth Fund Commission’s Scorecard on Health System Performance ranks North Carolina 41st among the fifty states and the District of Columbia in delivery of health care. The report released Thursday is a follow-up to a report issued in 2007, when North Carolina was ranked 30th. The Scorecard rates states on access, quality, costs and health outcomes. The top five states are Vermont, Hawaii, Iowa, Minnesota and Maine; Mississippi ranked the worst.
