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Under Missouri law, a mercury-based preservative used in the multi-dose vial of the H1N1 vaccine cannot be administered to pregnant women and children age 35 months or younger. KSMU’s Kristian Kriner reports on how healthcare facilities are trying to follow this law with the limited number of the preservative-free H1N1 vaccine shipments.
Thimerosal is a mercury-based preservative used in several multi-dose vaccines to protect the vaccine from outside contamination.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the preservative was discovered in the early 1930s and has been used in some vaccines ever since.
Kit Wagar, spokesman for the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, says several years later, some parents started to suspect there was a link between Thimerosal and autism.
He says parents and legislators got together to ban Thimerosal from being given to children under three and pregnant women in Missouri.
Wagar says there is no scientific evidence that Thimerosal causes autism.
Jaci McReynolds, spokesperson for the Springfield-Greene County Health Department, agrees that there is no connection between autism and Thimerosal.
“I know there is concern among some people about a possible connection between Thimerosal and autism, but it should be noted that there’s never been any scientific evidence to show that. So, this precaution of removing Thimerosal from vaccines is simply that it was just an extra precaution that was taken,” McReynolds said.
Wagar says it’s hard to distribute enough preservative-free vaccines to comply with Missouri law.
“What we’re grappling with is do we have enough preservative-free vaccines for women? Some counties are using up their allocations, generally, of all their vaccines and are waiting for their next shipment. We’re not hearing any widespread shortage or pregnant women who are trying to find the vaccine and haven’t been able to get it,” Wagar said.
He says Missouri has received over 11,000 Thimerosal-free H1N1 vaccines for pregnant women, but none for infants under age two.“A healthy kid who is two-years old can get that aerosol vaccine, but if you’re under two the aerosol vaccine is not appropriate. So, we don’t have any vaccines for kids under two at the moment,” Wagar said.
Wagar says the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services hasn’t heard any complaints about the shortage of infant vaccines.
McReynolds says Greene County has enough preservative-free vaccines for pregnant woman and its still waiting for the infant vaccines, which should be released soon.
“So far in Greene County, we’ve received about 4,500 doses of the nasal spray, which is preservative-free and 900 doses of the pre-filled adult syringes, which are also preservative-free,” McReynolds said.
She wants to remind people that anyone who may be worried about the preservative can receive the H1N1 nasal spray vaccine, which is Thimerosal-free as long as they’re over the age of two.
For KSMU News, I’m Kristian Kriner.
