Vaccine Transportation Requirements

Vaccine Transportation Requirements

Refrigerated and frozen vaccines partially or completely lose their potency if exposed to out-of-range temperatures. To maintain their integrity, correct temperatures and conditions must be held from manufacture to administration. This is referred to in the industry as the "cold chain," with each location the vaccines are stored representing a link in the chain. Binding those links together is vaccine transport.

As with vaccine storage, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)1 as well as local and regional Vaccines for Children (VFC)2 providers give recommendations for maintaining the cold chain in transport.

Refrigerated vaccines should be held between 36 and 46 degrees Fahrenheit.3 Frozen vaccines require temperatures between -58 and 5 degrees Fahrenheit, although certain ultra-cold vaccines require much lower temperatures.4 Operators should also follow any applicable light exposure restrictions.

Initial Distribution

All vaccines require transport from their manufacturers to local clinics, healthcare offices, hospitals, pharmacies, and other facilities where they are administered. This initial transport of vaccines often utilizes special shipping containers that may include gel packs and temperature monitoring devices (TMDs). When receiving these shipments, operators should check the TMD for out-of-range temperatures if one is included. If a TMD isn't included in the shipment, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services recommends operators should ensure that the package arrived within a specified ship-by date.5

Vaccine Transport Guidelines

Beyond the original distribution of vaccines, transport may be required in the following two situations:

  • Emergencies, such as power failure.
  • Transport between clinics, such as from a main location to a satellite location. This could also be due to office relocation or to avoid wasting vaccines that won't be used.6

Both situations require careful handling and temperature monitoring, including a TMD with digital data-logging capabilities and a buffered probe. Minimum CDC vaccine transport stipulations are more forgiving for emergencies than routine transport.

What Types of Containers Can be Used to Transport Vaccines?

There are several available methods for transporting vaccines, but some options should only be used in certain emergency situations. Food and beverage coolers shouldn't be used, although certain multipurpose containers that can also be used to transport food may be designed to handle vaccine transport.

Portable Vaccine Refrigerators

Portable vaccine refrigerators use battery power or connect to a portable or mobile power source. This option should be the first choice for vaccine transport if it's available.

Coldtainer offers cold transport in containers that hook into a vehicle's alternator circuit. These containers handle transport of any vaccine except those requiring ultra-cold temperatures, according to Coldtainer General Manager Terry Koerner. When paired with data-logging options, Coldtainer's product offers a solution for transport and temporary storage using AC or DC power, conforming to the CDC's recommendations. These machines are insulated to ensure no more than a 2- to 3-degree-Fahrenheit temperature gain per hour when disconnected from a power source, according to Koerner.

Accucold also offers units designed for transporting refrigerated and frozen vaccines. These can roll on casters through a building and connect to a vehicle's power supply.7

Qualified Packouts

Routine and emergency transport can also be done using qualified containers and packouts8, or vaccine transport cooler boxes and supplies that are specially designed or tested and approved for transporting vaccines without including onboard cooling. These insulated coolers should be used within transport time restrictions with special coolant packs and a TMD.

Conditioned Water Bottle Transport

In emergencies, operators can transport vaccines using a conditioned water bottle transport system, which includes cardboard and bubble wrap for insulation, frozen water bottles, and a TMD inside a hard-sided cooler.9 As a last resort, the original vaccine transport cooler from the manufacturer may be used, according to CDC recommendations.

Planning for Emergencies

Operations that store vaccines should come up with contingency plans for transporting their largest potential supply if an emergency occurs. Keeping portable vaccine refrigerators or qualified packouts on hand will ensure a facility is prepared for any situation.

Things to Know

Refrigerated and frozen vaccines should always be transported in separate containers with the correct temperature range maintained and monitored in each.

The CDC doesn't recommend transporting vaccines in open vials unless absolutely necessary. Opened multidose vaccine vials should only be transferred to facilities operated by the same provider and shouldn't be transported across state lines.

Diluents are liquids used to reconstitute dry vaccines. They should never be frozen but may be refrigerated, depending on temperature requirements. If you'll be transporting diluents that have been stored at room temperature along with refrigerated vaccines, make sure to refrigerate them ahead of time so that they won't bring down the temperature of the transport vessel.

Dry ice shouldn't be used for refrigerated vaccines or frozen vaccines that require temperatures in a range from -58 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit because it will likely bring temperatures below that range.

What Does CDC Compliant Mean?

While vendors may refer to products as CDC compliant, these claims are based on features and specifications that are designed to meet CDC vaccine transportation requirements. The CDC does not evaluate, verify, or endorse any products. For guidance on VFC-approved transport coolers and procedures, contact your local public vaccination program10.

Resources

  1. Vaccine Storage and Handling Toolkit. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Accessed December 2020.
  2. Transporting Refrigerated Vaccine: Guidelines for Emergency Vaccine Transport and Short-term Storage. California Department of Public Health, Immunization Branch, Vaccines for Children Program. Accessed December 2020.
  3. Why Does Pfizer's COVID-19 Vaccine Need To Be Kept Colder Than Antarctica?. NPR. Accessed December 2020.
  4. Temperature Sensitivity of Vaccines. World Health Organization. Accessed December 2022.
  5. Receiving VFC Vaccine Orders. State of Michigan. Accessed December 2020.
  6. New York State Vaccines for Children (NYS VFC) Program: Guidance for Vaccine Transport. New York State Department of Health. Accessed December 2020.
  7. Accucold Portable Refrigeration. Accucold Product Brochure. Accessed December 2020.
  8. Frequently Asked Questions about the National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit: “Checklist of Best Practices for Vaccination Clinics Held at Satellite, Temporary, or Off-site Locations” and Pledge for Implementing the Checklist. National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit. Accessed December 2020.
  9. Packing Vaccines for Transport during Emergencies. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Accessed December 2020.
  10. Vaccines for Children Program (VFC) Contacts. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Accessed December 2020.

Disclaimer

KaTom Restaurant Supply doesn’t claim expertise in the medical field and this article merely consists of information relayed from qualified sources. Operators should follow guidance from manufacturers and applicable local and federal health organizations when handling vaccines.