Just like stores get ready with fall essentials before the first sign of cold weather, health care providers stock up too, but with flu protection and CSL Seqirus just started shipping theirs to the U.S.
Seems early, but there are two good reasons.
- U.S. flu vaccine manufacturers just received regulatory approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the season’s vaccines.
- According to the World Health Organization (WHO), The COVID-19 pandemic led to many missed vaccinations, influenza included. Health care providers aim to help get the public back on track.
"Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, there has been a significant drop in immunization rates for many vaccine-preventable diseases like flu for a number of reasons, including lockdowns, overburdened health systems and vaccine hesitancy or fatigue,” said CSL Seqirus Chief Health Officer Dr. Gregg Sylvester. “However, these diseases remain a threat and we are committed to doing our part by working with partners in public health to help restore influenza immunization rates to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data from April 2023, U.S. flu vaccination coverage for children six months to 17 years was at 55.1% compared to 62.2% in 2020. During the most recent flu season, 71% of those 65 years of age or older were vaccinated while only 36% of adults ages 18-49 received the flu vaccine.
Low vaccination rates can spell trouble when flu season is severe, said Dr. Jonathan Anderson, CSL Seqirus Executive Director of Medical Affairs, International Regions. Public health experts in North America and Europe look to Australia for clues about how severe the coming influenza season will be because the Northern Hemisphere often mirrors the Southern Hemisphere. In Australia, where it’s currently flu season, flu cases appear to be returning to pre-pandemic levels, he said.
Globally, the World Health Organization is encouraging “The Big Catch-Up" – a post-pandemic effort to vaccinate children against vaccine preventable diseases so they’ll be protected.
“We cannot allow a legacy of the pandemic to be the undoing of many years’ work protecting more and more children from deadly, preventable diseases,” said Dr. Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, in an article on The Big Catch Up.
CSL Seqirus’ part in the Big Catch Up is ensuring that vaccines are in the hands of health care providers and ready to administer when the flu season approaches, which could be as early as October.
“For the upcoming U.S. flu season, CSL Seqirus is poised to manufacture and deliver over 55 million doses of vaccine which takes a significant amount of collaboration across all our functions,” said Dave Ross, CSL Seqirus Vice President of Commercial Operations, North America. “From the commercial perspective, this entails working alongside our quality, manufacturing and supply chain partners to ensure we are meeting the needs of our customers in public health.”
