City Health Services now offers both the Pfizer and Moderna Covid-19 Vaccinations. Since select dates and times have been set aside, appointments are required to provide the service as quickly and efficiently as possible. Please call our Mesa office at 480-649-5297.
Information below provided by the Arizona Department of Health Services. It is subject to change. Please consult one of our doctors or nurse practioners for up-to-date information.
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) held a meeting on August 30, 2021 concerning COVID-19 vaccines.
ACIP has voted to recommend Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine (Comirnaty®) for people 16 years of age and older under FDA’s full approval of the vaccine for this age group.
- ACIP still recommends that Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine be used in 12-15 year-olds under the Emergency Use Authorization(EUA).
- Comirnaty® and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine have the same formulation. Therefore, people who have received one dose of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine can finish their series with Comirnaty®.
This new vote does not change ACIP’s recommendation to give an additional mRNA COVID-19 dose (a third dose) to moderately to severely immunocompromised people) at least 28 days after their second dose of mRNA vaccine.
- Recommendations on additional doses for moderately and severely immunocompromised people who received Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines will be given in the near future.
The U.S. is still in a public health emergency and COVID-19 vaccines are being purchased by the U.S. government. Therefore, even though Comirnaty® (Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine) now has full FDA approval for ages 16 years and above, at the present time, providers should continue to distribute the EUA patient information document in place of a VIS that is usually used for FDA-approved vaccines. COVID-19 vaccines that are fully approved by the FDA will continue to be covered by the Countermeasure Injury Compensation Program. |
CDC wants providers to be aware that they must use COVID-19 vaccines according to FDA and CDC guidance.
- Use of COVID-19 vaccines outside of FDA and CDC recommendations (“off label”) are not recommended and is strongly advised against. Doing so runs the following risks:
- It violates the provider’s signed agreement with the CDC.
- Providers may not be covered under PREP Act and therefore not have the immunity from prosecution that the PREP Act provides.
- Recipients of an “off-label” COVID-19 vaccine dose may not be covered by the Countermeasure Injury Compensation Program if there were to have serious adverse events from the vaccine.
- Providers who violate the CDC agreement may not be able to remain as part of CDC programs.
- COVID-19 vaccine administration fees may not be covered if the dose were given “off-label.”
COVID-19 vaccines are still showing high effectiveness against SARS-CoV-2, even against the delta variant, especially in preventing severe illness, hospitalization and death.
- Continuing to give COVID-19 vaccine to the unvaccinated or partially vaccinated is essential.
On August 25, 2021, CDC updated its “Interim Clinical Considerations for Use of COVID-19 Vaccines Authorized in the United States.” It has:
- A new section on people who have received COVID-19 vaccines in the United States as part of a clinical trial that are not currently authorized for general use.
- Updated considerations for use of an additional mRNA COVID-19 vaccine dose after an initial 2-dose COVID-19 mRNA vaccine series for immunocompromised people.
ACIP is discussing booster doses for people who are fully vaccinated, but further discussion and evaluation are needed. ACIP will wait until FDA licenses COVID-19 vaccines to be used as a booster dose before ACIP makes booster dose recommendations.
