According to the CDC, government is responsible for delays in H1N1 vaccine production and distribution, not private manufacturers.   In a weekly 2009 H1N1 Flu Media Briefing held on 23 October, the CDC outlined vaccine production problem areas and inadvertently released the elephant out of the bag: “I want to say a few words about seasonal flu vaccine.  More than 85 million doses have been distributed and, just to remind you, seasonal flu vaccine is distributed by the manufacturers.  It does not go through the public system.  We provide about 10% of the overall seasonal flu vaccine”

This is huge.  It explains the differences between public and private efficiency.  So far this year, the private sector has shipped 85 million doses of seasonal flu vaccine.   And what has the public sector accomplished?  Far less.  The H1N1 vaccine being developed and distributed by government bureaucrats is in shambles.   According to the CDC, “as of this Wednesday, there were 14.1 million doses available to the states for ordering.  We are nowhere near where we thought we’d be by now.”   Stated as if government operations are in any way efficient.  What they really meant to say was that H1N1 vaccine delays are being caused by government managed inefficiencies.    But why should there be any delays?   Government officials and vaccine makers say the H1N1 vaccines are made the same way that flu vaccines have been made for years and contain the same ingredients, including virus particles in a solution that contains ingredients such as sucrose, phosphate, arginine, gelatin and glutamate, to stabilize the vaccine. “One hundred million people get those every year, and we believe there’s a very strong safety record for them,” Dr. Schuchat said.

The CDC is coordinating 100% H1N1 vaccine production through private manufacturers.  Government set the dose number and wrote the contracts.   In August the CDC expanded its existing vaccine distribution partnership with McKesson to Include H1N1 Flu Vaccine.   McKesson is the largest CDC distributor of other vaccines.  This doesn’t happen with 90% of the seasonal flu vaccine which is produced and shipped by private industry directly into the market.   If that isn’t a bumper sticker for keeping government out of health care I don’t know what else is.

Now lets apply what we know to what the CDC said;

“Vaccine production is much less predictable than we wish.  As of this Wednesday, there were 14.1 million doses available to the states for ordering.  We are nowhere near where we thought we’d be by now.”

Vaccine production is always unpredictable and the H1N1 vaccine is made just like any other seasonal flu vaccine.  Rejection rates are well known throughout the industry.   The private industry knows this which is why vaccine shortages in the private sector rarely happen, driven by the corporate world need to make a profit in order to stay in business.   Is the CDC required to produce in order to stay in business?  Not with your tax dollars they aren’t.    Government bureaucracies are never efficient and they aren’t required to be.

“The tools that we have available are not as modern as we would like or as rapid, and all of us can be part of an effective response.  We wish it didn’t take so long to produce and there have been efforts going back many years to develop more rapid methods of producing vaccine.  More than $2 billion has been spent by the department of health and human services trying to develop newer methods of vaccine production.  This is a high priority, but it’s not easy.”

This is nonsense and pathetic at the same time.  Saying “we wish” things were better?  And did they use imaginary tools to project requirements?  Of course not.  Nobody bases requirements on “Tools we wished we had”.   This isn’t about tools, its about a failure to contract sufficient doses with multiple manufacturers.   And come on now, if 2 Billion of taxpayer money hasn’t produced any improvements they need an audit.

“Manufacturers are working hard to get as much vaccine out safely as possible.  The vaccine strains of the virus grow and that’s how we develop vaccine, even if you yell at them, they don’t grow faster.”

What a dumb joke that was.  This has nothing to do with yelling at eggs, or in any way implying the process is at fault.   Try doing a better job predicting requirements by contracting with several manufacturers.   Better yet, try making decisions as if the success of the CDC were based on sales.

” There is no risk to health care workers if they get the mist for their patients.  There are some misconceptions about this.”

Misconceptions from the government?   Say it isn’t so.  We are talking about simple directions/precautions for a ‘mist vaccine’ …  if they can’t get that right we are all in serious trouble.

In the final analysis you need to ask yourself this question.   Using the analogy that government caused the housing market melt down with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, its easy to conclude that Fannie and Freddie represent the Public Option.    And the same way government destroyed the housing market along with our economy is about to happen with health care under a public option.  Do you really want a health care system melt down?    Because its coming… this is what liberals are doing to this Country.   One sector at a time.

Max Venom is a freelance writer for The Inside Straight

Published 26 October 2009