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Tamiflu Vaccine Shipments to U.S. Halted by
Manufacturer
Tamiflu, Relenza antiviral drugs primarily for
regular flu but seen as help in avian flu battle and hoarding suspected
Oct. 28, 2005 – The manufacturer of Tamiflu, a
vaccine primarily for the regular seasonal flu, but also considered as
help against avian flu, has announced a halt to shipments of their
vaccine to the U.S. Excessive orders have led the company to believe
their drug is being hoarded by companies anticipating a high demand if
avian flu should emerge in this country.
Hoffman-La Roche Inc said their priority in this
flu season is to ensure Tamiflu will be available to patients who are
diagnosed with influenza as well as those in need of post-exposure
treatment or prevention from seasonal influenza.
Health care information collector Verispan said
more than 67,000 U.S. Tamiflu prescriptions were dispensed for the week
ending October 21 -- quadruple the demand from the same week last year,
according to a report by Reuters.
Newsweek reported this week that antiviral drugs
are an important part of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) plan to
combat avian flu.
“There are only two, Tamiflu and Relenza, and they
both work in the same way, by interrupting the virus's ability to
replicate within the body,” Newsweek said.
On September 15, Health and Human Services
announced an agreement with GlaxoSmithKline on a $2.8 million contract
for 84,300 treatment courses of the antiviral drug zanamivir (Relenza).
HHS said this would provide HHS with an initial supply of zanamivir, “an
antiviral medication that is effective in reducing the severity of
symptoms of human seasonal influenza.”
HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt said, “This antiviral
purchase builds upon HHS’ efforts to stockpile oseltamivir (Tamiflu),
another antiviral medication that is effective in treating the symptoms
of human seasonal influenza. The H5N1 virus that is circulating in
Southeast Asia appears to be sensitive to the antiviral activities of
these drugs.”
Two weeks ago, Leavitt told reporters that the
United States had stockpiled 2.3 million courses of Tamiflu and that two
million more would be on hand within two days. That would still be far
short of the WHO recommendation, which suggests nations stockpile enough
to cover 10 percent of their population. At the end of last week,
though, CDC officials put the national reserve at 2.3 million courses,
still, with the additional two million courses now expected by the end
of November, according to Newsweek’s cover story.
It has also been noted that physicians have
sometimes chosen to write prescriptions for Tamiflu for selected
patients at the start of the flu season to ensure that patients had
Tamiflu easily at hand when the doctor confirmed the diagnosis of
influenza.
“Tamiflu is an important medication for patients
during a normal flu season,” said George Abercrombie, President and CEO
of Hoffmann-La Roche.
“The amount of Tamiflu capsules that were
manufactured for this year’s flu season was more than double the demand
last year. At the present time, we do not have an avian influenza
pandemic in the United States. However, we need to make sure that people
exposed to this year’s seasonal flu virus will have access to Tamiflu.
“We are absolutely committed to taking whatever
steps are needed to help prevent or control a pandemic,” Abercrombie
said.
“Our announcement today will help assure that
people who need Tamiflu for this year’s seasonal flu will have access to
it, while at the same time we move forward to deal with the threat of a
worldwide pandemic of avian flu. Our goal is to make sure that Tamiflu
is there, where and when it’s needed.”
In May, Dr. Julie L. Gerberding, Director of the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, testified to Congress on
pandemic preparedness.
She said, “Seasonal influenza causes an average of
36,000 deaths each year in the United States, mostly among the elderly
and nearly 200,000 hospitalizations.
“In contrast, the actual severity and impact of the
next pandemic, whether from H5N1 or another influenza virus, cannot be
predicted. However, modeling studies suggest that, in the absence of any
control measures, such as vaccination, a "medium-level" pandemic in the
United States could result in 89,000 to 207,000 deaths, between 314,000
and 734,000 hospitalizations, 18 to 42 million outpatient visits, and
another 20 to 47 million people being sick.
“Between 15 percent and 35 percent of the United
States population could be affected by an influenza pandemic, and the
economic impact in our country alone could range between $71.3 and
$166.5 billion.”
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