Forty-nine states, the District of Columbia, and one U.S. territory have reported 1,299 cases of lung injury associated with the use of electronic cigarette (e-cigarette), or vaping, products. Twenty-six deaths have been reported from 21 states. Based on the most current data, CDC's updated interim guidance provides a framework for health care providers in their initial assessment, evaluation, management, and follow-up of persons with symptoms of e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated lung injury (EVALI). Rapid recognition by health care providers of patients with EVALI and an increased understanding of treatment considerations could reduce morbidity and mortality associated with this injury.

Objectives. To show how the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Pandemic Vaccine Campaign Planning Tool (PanVax Tool) can help state and local public health emergency planners demonstrate and quantify how partnerships with community vaccine providers can improve their overall pandemic vaccination program readiness.Methods. The PanVax Tool helps planners compare different strategies to vaccinate their jurisdiction's population in a severe pandemic by allowing users to customize the underlying model inputs in real time, including their jurisdiction's size, community vaccine provider types, and how they allocate vaccine to these providers. In this report, we used a case study with hypothetical data to illustrate how jurisdictions can utilize the PanVax Tool for preparedness planning.Results. By using the tool, planners are able to understand the impact of engaging with different vaccine providers in a vaccination campaign.Conclusions. The PanVax Tool is a useful tool to help demonstrate the impact of community vaccine provider partnerships on pandemic vaccination readiness and identify areas for improved partnerships for pandemic response.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) coordinates the Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) program through cooperative agreements with 62 jurisdictions, including all 50 states, eight US territories and freely associated states, and four local jurisdictions.1 Jurisdictions are required to maintain plans to ensure that large volumes of medical countermeasures, both pharmaceutical and nonpharmaceutical, can be distributed and dispensed in a timely manner. Plans must consider both the characteristics of the emergency and the medical countermeasures being dispensed. For example, differences in skills, infrastructure, and equipment should be expected when dispensing antibiotics or antiviral medications compared with administering vaccines in mass vaccination settings. Jurisdictions that receive PHEP funding are required to conduct at least one full-scale exercise or functional exercise every five years to test the operational status of their distribution or dispensing plans.1

In an influenza pandemic, two vaccine doses administered 21 days apart may be needed for individuals of all ages to achieve seroprotection. Achieving dose-series completion can be challenging even for routinely recommended vaccines. To prepare for a two-dose influenza pandemic vaccine campaign and promote dose-series completion and correct dosing intervals, CDC and its partners developed a text message-based vaccine reminder system to remind persons who receive a first dose of pandemic influenza vaccine to receive the second dose. Taking advantage of the high prevalence of cell phones in the United States, the system sent second-dose text message reminders and hyperlinks to educational information. The system was pilot tested from November 2015 to April 2016 among graduate public health students enrolled at four United States universities. Universities were selected based on convenience, and each university used a different recruitment method. Among 59 volunteers who pilot tested the system and completed a survey, 57 (92%) felt the system would be helpful during a pandemic. Forty (68%) respondents felt the information included in the messages was informative. Volunteers recommended including actionable ways to stay healthy during a pandemic, though specific suggestions varied. With further development, text reminder systems could be used to promote adherence to a two-dose regimen in a future pandemic, although audience-specific messaging and other complementary systems will likely be needed. Public and private partners can adapt and implement this tool in conjunction with their routine patient information systems to improve dose-series completion and ensure optimal protection during an influenza pandemic.