Dear Students, Faculty and Staff: As you may be aware, the first doses of injectable H1N1 vaccine are now becoming available across the country. The ultimate goal is to vaccinate as much of the U.S. population as possible. Initially, however, there will be a very limited supply of the vaccine. Until supplies sufficient for mass vaccination can be manufactured and distributed nationwide, vaccine will have to be administered to high-priority recipients only. The Johns Hopkins Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response, which is charged with oversight of pandemic planning across all of Johns Hopkins -- both the university and the health system -- has developed a fair, ethical and equitable policy to help ensure a well-coordinated H1N1 vaccination program. The policy was developed over several weeks and included discussions and deliberations with vaccination and public health experts, bioethicists and the senior-most leadership of the institutions. Johns Hopkins employees and students are encouraged to learn about the policy and its underlying rationale by visiting the CEPAR Web site at http://www.insidehopkinsmedicine.org/cepar The entire vaccination protocol document is linked to that page, which is accessible only from within the Johns Hopkins network. As the protocol spells out in detail, CEPAR has developed a multi-tiered priority vaccination plan. Health care workers in high-risk settings and pregnant women (including pregnant university employees and pregnant eligible students) in their 24th week or later are in the first tier and will be among the first to be offered vaccination. Also in that first tier are full-time students who are cared for through the student health service located at or sponsored by their school or campus, who are 18 or younger, and who have certain major underlying health conditions, such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder. The vaccine will be made available to persons in the first tier across all of Johns Hopkins as it becomes available. As more doses are received, vaccination will be offered to persons in successively lower tiers, again, across all of Johns Hopkins. Finally, when sufficient doses are in hand, all eligible Johns Hopkins faculty, staff and students, regardless of the tier in which they fall, will be offered immunization, as will eligible family members. Individual campuses or units of the university will announce the scheduling of vaccination sessions, along with information about which employees or students are eligible at a particular time and other relevant details. I urge you to play close attention for these announcements and to get the H1N1 vaccine when you are eligible. I also urge you very strongly to get the seasonal flu vaccine, which is already available, as soon as possible. Public health authorities recommend that you get both the seasonal and H1N1 vaccines this year. Information on seasonal vaccination sessions for faculty and staff is available at http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/hse/occupational_health/flu_campaign.html Students should consult the student health service serving their school for information on administration of seasonal flu vaccine. H1N1 flu vaccine will be free to eligible persons. I do want to remind you, however, that in some schools and on some campuses, there is a fee for administration of the seasonal vaccine to students. Sincerely, Lloyd B. Minor
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
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