(CNSNews.com) – At a Senate hearing Wednesday, Republicans asked members of President Obama’s cabinet if the shortage of swine flu vaccine could mean millions of Americans will not be protected against the virus.

Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said last week that instead of the expected 40 million doses expected by the end of October, some 30 million doses of the vaccine are expected to have been shipped.
 
“There still is an issue of whether the vaccine is going to get to people too late,” Rep. Susan Collins (R-Maine), vice chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, said after Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Education Secretary Arne Duncan testified.
 
Collins cited a Purdue University study, published Oct. 15 in “Eurosurveillance,” that said vaccine production delays could mean that more Americans fall ill with the flu.
 
“The authors of this study said the greatest number of infections actually will occur this very week, when most people are still waiting for their vaccine,” Collins said.
 
According to the Purdue study, “the model predicts that there will be a significant wave in autumn, with 63% of the population being infected, and that this wave will peak so early that the planned CDC vaccination campaign will likely not have a large effect on the total number of people ultimately infected by the pandemic H1N1 influenza virus.”

The vaccine shortage stems from production bottlenecks, or as Sebelius put it, "Right now we are at a point where the demand is ahead of the yield."  Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told a cable television channel, "This is a delay. It's not a shortage."

The bottleneck involves pharmaceutical companies, who are struggling to produce both swine flu vaccine along with regular flu vaccine. Press reports said there also have been delays at companies that put the vaccine into syringes, and further bogging down the process were government tests needed to clear vaccine batches for use.

Collins said that because of “liability concerns,” Americans were dependent on swine flu and other vaccines being produced in other countries. “Is the administration developing any kind of plan or recommendations to try to ensure that we have the capability to produce vaccines right here in the United States?” Collins asked.


Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius testified at the hearing with a bandage on her forehead, and one of her eyes swollen. Her staff said the secretary had had a basal cell carcinoma removed. (CNSNews.com/Penny Starr)
Sebelius alluded to an arm of HHS that is in charge of such plans and recommendations but did not give specifics.
 
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) followed up on Collins’ line of questioning by trying to pin down Sebelius on a timetable for distribution of the remaining vaccines in his state of Arizona and around the country. “What’s your estimate of when (the CDC) will catch up?” McCain asked.
 
“We think by early November they will be back on track with the number of vaccinations that we had originally anticipated,” Sebelius said.
 
“When would you expect them to be caught up?” McCain asked again.
 
“Senator, I have no idea,” Sebelius said. “I can get that information.”


Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) tried to press Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on when the government would have the vaccines needed to vaccinate all Americans who want to be vaccinated. (CNSNews.com/Penny Starr)
“When will all states be caught up?” McCain asked. “You can supply that to the record. I’m sure that people are concerned when we would have a sufficient number of vaccines and make sure that we do what’s necessary. I’d be interested in when you anticipate for those original estimates to be done.”
 
Sebelius replied that she would get that information for the committee.
 
Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) said reports of vaccine shortages and the rapid spread of the virus was grim news.
 
“(H1N1 has) moved with alarming speed and took an exceptionally high toll at a time of year when we don’t encounter a high number of flu cases,” Lieberman said. “Flu spikes typically occur in January. We’re in October … and the number of cases is higher than what we usually see at the flu’s peak in January.”
 
According to the CDC, more than 800 Americans have died from H1N1, including 86 children.
 
Sebelius said the best resource for people concerned about the flu to get accurate and up-to-date information is a new government Web site, www.flu.gov.