Flu Vaccine Contamination Issues

The flu vaccine shortage story continues to spiral out of control.

There were serratia problems at the Liverpool plant in 2001 and 2002. The flu vaccine story is VERY bad news for the FDA, CDC, and CHIRon. The public is the ultimate loser. Do not expect any vaccine from CHIR next year either.

When I was listening to the FDA's Lester Crawford's congressional testimony I was waiting for the key question on the organism causing the 2003 contamination problems. The answer is now quite obvious:

www.sfgate.com.../c/a/2004/11/21/FLU.TMP

"High levels of bacteria in the early stages of production were once again a problem. Congressional investigators concluded that, in some cases, the levels "were more than 1,000 times higher than expected.'' Serratia bacteria, the same potentially lethal microbe that turned up in CHIRon lots this summer, was detected 14 times in Powderject tests of vaccine after it had passed through a process known as "ultrafiltration'' in 2001 and 2002. "