BOISE — A nationwide shortage of the shingles vaccine, Shingrix, is such a problem that some Idaho pharmacies haven’t had it for months and people are on waiting lists to get it.
Travis Walthall is a pharmacist at Custom RX pharmacy in Kuna. He says they haven't had Shingrix in stock for almost two months.
“We have about nine or ten people on our list that are waiting to get shots,” he said. “I've called a couple of wholesalers that are completely out of it. Some other pharmacies do have some in stock, but you want to call around if need to get one right away.”
Shingrix is a new shingles vaccine for adults 50 and older approved by the Food and Drug Administration last October. It replaces the old vaccine and is considered the most effective treatment for shingles.
“Everybody was jumping on board,” Walthall said. “Pretty much all of the doctors are switching over they prefer [Shingrix].”
“I really would just attribute that to how common shingles is and how painful it is when you get it,” said Dr. Charles Davis, the chief medical officer at Saint Alphonsus in Boise. “We started giving it at Saint Al's in about March. It's been popular and we've had about a fourfold increase in requests for shingles vaccines since then.”
Davis says they've been able to keep up with those requests so far, but with the shortage, he expects there will be delays in the future.
Something adding more complications to the shortage is that Shingrix is a two-part series: You get the first vaccine and then the second two to six months later for full effectiveness.
“A lot of people that are in trouble right now have gotten their first shot,” Walthall said.
To make sure you get that second vaccine medical professionals recommend planning.
“If you get that first vaccine make sure you're on the list to be prioritized to get that second vaccine,” Davis said. “So, if new patients are coming in to get the vaccine patients needing their second dose need to be prioritized above new patients.”
The CDC estimates there are 1 million cases of shingles in the United States each year, and the vaccine is the only way to protect yourself.