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The CDC warns travelers to get the yellow fever vaccine immediately as the supply is running out.
The CDC issued a warning for travelers planning a journey abroad. They are strongly advising travelers to get vaccinated with the yellow fever vaccine immediately. According to reports, the US supply of this vaccine is expected to run out by the end of July. The agency recommends people against going on a trip to countries with reported yellow fever cases if they didn’t manage to get the shot.
The Yellow Fever Vaccine Is In Short Supply In The US
On Friday, the CDC stated that the vaccine is going to be very hard to find in the US this summer. A report was published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Until now, the vaccine was available in more than 4,000 clinics all over the US. Throughout this summer, the yellow fever vaccine is going to be found in less than 250 clinics.
People should not skip this shot if they are planning on traveling especially to countries with known yellow fever cases. Last year, there was a large outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and in Angola. Because of it, health officials decided to start a massive immunization campaign. More than 30 million people received the shot in 2016. This outbreak also created a shortage in the global supply of the vaccine. The WHO was forced to give fractional doses of the shot.
This year, another outbreak had health officials stretch the global supply once again. Health officials are now concerned that this yellow fever vaccine is not enough and that the disease might spread in the US and South America. This is why US citizens need to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
The CDC mentioned that they are taking action to import another vaccine, an alternative one. This is not currently licensed in the US, only in Europe. Even if the vaccine receives approval, the CDC will only be able to import it in limited doses. These are going to be available only in a few clinics in the US.
Currently, there is only one yellow fever vaccine approved in the United States. The current shortage was caused by the fact that the company that produces this shot, Sanofi Pasteur, is updating its manufacturing facility.
Sanofi considered that there would be enough doses to last until 2018. This is the scheduled ending date for their construction work at the facility. However, due to manufacturing complication, the company lost a significant amount of yellow fever vaccine doses.
Image source: Wikipedia
