McKesson Corporation announces that its current partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been expanded to include preparations for H1N1 flu vaccine distribution.

The CDC currently has a contract with McKesson for distribution of its public-sector purchased adult and pediatric vaccines, including those distributed through the Vaccines for Children Program. Through this program, McKesson distributes 80 million doses to more than 40,000 providers each year.

Under the authority of Unusual and Compelling Urgency (Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-2), the CDC is expanding its existing contract with McKesson to include centralized distribution of the H1N1 flu vaccine currently under development.

The H1N1 vaccine distribution effort will include the centralized distribution of the H1N1 flu vaccine to as many as 90,000 sites across the country, making it the largest public health initiative in the CDC’s history. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the CDC are working with state and local public health officials and vaccine manufacturers to develop the timeline and plan for distribution and administration of the H1N1 flu vaccine to the public.

Preparations are underway for McKesson to manage its part of the H1N1 flu vaccine initiative. McKesson’s role will be to distribute the vaccine to sites designated by state health departments across the country. Each state will designate the providers who will receive and administer the vaccine.

As the CDC’s centralized vaccine distributor, McKesson has established a track record of improving the consistency and reliability of the CDC’s vaccine supply while reducing costs. McKesson also has access to a network of thousands of CDC providers through technology systems that link those providers to an existing distribution system and provide data to the CDC on a daily basis.