Vaccine shipments should arrive in time for high-risk patients.

2002 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Aventis Pasteur, the largest U.S. supplier of influenza vaccine, planned to complete shipping partial orders of Fluzone, influenza virus vaccine, to all of its customers by the end of September, with customers who placed smaller orders receiving their entire order.

Customers who placed large orders will receive the balance of their order in October and November, the company said.

"It is important that our customers have a reliable and equitable influenza vaccine distribution system, and we are pleased to have begun shipments of vaccine on schedule," said Phil Hosbach, Aventis Pasteur. "The company's Fluzone vaccine supply for this season is excellent, and our phased vaccine delivery schedule allows healthcare providers to begin vaccinating those high-risk patients who need the vaccine first in accordance with the CDC's recommended schedule."

Aventis Pasteur's phased vaccine delivery system is designed to ensure high-risk patients are prioritized in October, as recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). For those customers who do not receive their entire order initially, the balance of customers' vaccine orders will be shipped in October and November to ensure customers can immunize healthy individuals before the start of the influenza season.

Aventis Pasteur made a significant capital investment in 2001 to expand production of its Fluzone vaccine, which increased total production by 20%. Current production is ...