RSV vaccine shortage frustrates physicians across the region

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Even though health experts are urging vaccination against RSV, a shortage of the vaccine continues to pose problems in the two-state region.

Following a nationwide shortage of the RSV vaccination in October, the CDC and FDA said in November they would be expediting additional doses. They said more than 77,000 additional doses would be released with the goal of making the vaccine more widely available by the end of 2023.

However, the shortage continues to impact families in South Carolina, as many physicians still have little to no doses of the vaccines.

DHEC says the issue stems from the supply chain and how the current supply doesn’t meet the demand of vaccinations needed.

“We continue to have a shortage of RSV vaccines and continue to ask physicians to be judicious in their use,” said DHEC’s Lead Medical Consultant Martha Buchanan, MD. “That’s where that conversation with the physician comes in about children who need an RSV vaccine.”

Pediatrician Lauren Ancona, MD is one of the Midlands physicians impacted by the shortage. At first, she was excited about an RSV vaccine becoming available to her patients at Carolina Pediatrics.

“All physicians and pediatricians in the area were super excited when we heard about the new vaccine,” Ancona said.

Ancona’s practice at Carolina Pediatrics received the first shipment of vaccines in November, but it only contained twenty doses. She hasn’t received any since.

“It wasn’t available for us to receive, so that led to some frustration and disappointment,” Ancona said, “We were having patients come in [and] ask about it, but we didn’t have anything to offer them.”

Imani Wilson-Peterkin was one lucky mom who was able to get her twin daughters vaccinated. With both of them being high-risk, she felt she needed to protect her daughters, but said it wasn’t easy finding the shot to help keep them healthy.

“It was hard at first because, of course, there wasn’t a lot of the vaccines,” Wilson-Peterkin said, “It was kind of like pulling tooth and nail because of that.”

So far, roughly 1,000 RSV vaccines have been given out to infants in South Carolina. Since supply is currently still limited, physicians are being encouraged to only give doses to the most vulnerable patients.

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