COVID-19 Provider Portal

COVID-19 boosters are currently available through the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) health districts and participating providers. 

CDC recommends everyone 18+ years who is fully vaccinated against COVID-19 should get a booster.

When?

At least 2 months after a 1-dose vaccine, Johnson&Johnson/ Janssen

or

At least 6 months after a 2-dose vaccine, Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna

Eligible individuals may choose which vaccine they receive as a booster dose. Some people may have a preference for the vaccine type that they originally received and others, may prefer to get a different booster. CDC’s recommendations now allow for this type of mix and match dosing for booster shots.

Not all types of vaccines will be available at all sites. For information about COVID vaccines or to schedule a vaccination appointment visit dph.ga.gov/covid-vaccine or vaccinefinder.org.

DPH continues to stress the importance of vaccination for all Georgians aged 5 years and older. Vaccination is our best tool to protect lives and stop the spread of COVID-19 in our state.

Remember to populate race and ethnicity data for individuals receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

Residents are not required to visit the District Health Centers for their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. They may obtain their second doses at the same facility/provider where they obtained their first dose.

Please find State Executive Orders from Governor Kemp here.

Please text COVIDGAHCP to 77297 for provider updates and COVIDGAGEN to 77297 for general updates.

The new system for COVID-19 vaccine management referred to as VMS is available to all pandemic providers across Georgia. VMS is to be used for COVID ordering, COVID inventory management, COVID dose administration, and viewing COVID reporting information. The system providers an efficient and effective method to replace the previous COVID allocation process.

Call the COVID-19 Provider Hotline at 888-920-0165 or email [email protected]@dph.ga.gov if you need assistance accessing or navigating VMS.

VMS Overview Training - this is a training requirement of all new pandemic providers. Please click here to access the module.

VMS Functionality Training - this training goes in depth to the different actions providers will need to complete in VMS. Please click here to access the module.

Click here to access and download the VMS Provider user guide.

Click here to access and download the VMS Reporting user guide.

“Why isn’t my inventory quantity accurate?”

COVID vaccine inventory should be managed in VMS. To perform inventory deductions (-), please access the Inventory Disposal tile in VMS. If you wish to increase the inventory shown on hand (+), this will be done within the Inventory Addition tile in VMS.

Currently all vaccine requests are being fulfilled through provider-to-provider transfers facilitated by your assigned Immunization Regional Consultant (IRC) or the DPH Warehouse. Providers with excess vaccines may contact their assigned IRC so these doses can be considered for a future transfer.

Providers will be contacted directly by their assigned IRC or a member of the DPH Warehouse to confirm vaccine requests and schedule a delivery date and time.

To minimize the number of unused expired doses and manage expiring doses correctly, we encourage providers to: 

• Monitor expiration dates weekly, rotate stock as needed, and follow a “first in, first out” strategy to manage inventory.   
• If nearing expiration, check posted manufacturer information for the most up to date expiration/extension information for vaccine lots.   

How to handle expired or expiring COVID vaccine supply:

• Upon expiration, providers who can safely quarantine expired doses in the appropriate storage unit environment should:
  • Quarantine doses and mark them “Do Not Use”.
  • Place vaccine in a storage unit where the risk of inadvertently administering an expired dose can be avoided
• Providers unable to safely quarantine expired doses should:
  • Based on the latest expiration information, REMOVE expired vaccine from the storage unit IMMEDIATELY. Do not give staff an opportunity to administer expired vaccine.   

If expired vaccine is inadvertently administered, it is considered a vaccine administration error and requires remediation including a VAERS report, contacting the recipient to inform them of the error, and may or may not require revaccination based on the manufacturers’ guidance.  Guidance on vaccine administration errors can be found in Appendix A of the Interim Clinical Considerations for Use of COVID-19 Vaccines Currently Authorized in the United States.

Clinics that have ultra-cold storage units have an option to opt-out of receiving additional dry ice shipments. Please respond to Kaleisha Blount ([email protected]) or Ben Sloat ([email protected]) with your PINs if you no longer want to receive dry ice shipments; the CDC system VTRCKS will then be updated.

Vaccine storage unit temperatures must be monitored regularly and recorded at the start of each workday. Always record minimum/maximum temperature, date, time, name of person checking/recording temperature, and actions taken if a temperature excursion occurred. Temperature records must be kept for a minimum of three years or longer if required by your jurisdiction.

Providers should not contact Pfizer or Moderna to cancel a vaccine request. If a provider is not able to store a vaccine delivery, they should immediately notify the Georgia Immunization Program by calling 404 657-3158 and also notify their local health department. Public health staff will work to locate a facility where the vaccine can be transferred. The facility that initially requested the vaccine should accept the shipment. Do not open the shipping container. The vaccine should be kept in a secure location until it can be picked up and moved to another location.

The ACIP updated the Interim Clinical Considerations for Use of mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines Currently Authorized in the United States.  A summary of recent changes (last updated February 10, 2021) can be found here.

Summary of recent changes:

• New recommendations for preventing, reporting, and managing mRNA COVID-19 vaccine administration errors (in Appendix A). 
• Clarification on contraindications and precautions.
• Updated information on delayed, local injection-site reactions after the first mRNA vaccine dose. These reactions are neither a contraindication nor precaution to the second dose.
• Updated quarantine recommendations for vaccinated persons.
• Additional information and updated recommendations for testing for TB infection.

The CDC has provided clearer guidance regarding providers asking individuals for a cash payment for the administration of COVID-19 vaccine. Per CDC it is not allowable to request a payment from the client receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. More information can be found here.

All organizations and providers participating in the CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Program:

• Must administer COVID-19 vaccine regardless of the vaccine recipient's ability to pay COVID-19 vaccine administration fees or coverage status.
• May seek appropriate reimbursement from a program or plan that covers COVID-19 vaccine administration fees for the vaccine recipient.
• May not seek any reimbursement, including through balance billing, from the vaccine recipient.

For additional information on filing claims for reimbursement of COVID-19 vaccine administration fees, go to:

• HRSA COVID-19 Uninsured Program
• CMS Guidance

The  Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act (PREP Act)  provides immunity for “covered persons” from liability against any claim of loss “caused by, arising out of, relating to, or resulting from” the distribution, administration, or use of COVID-19 vaccines approved by FDA under an EUA or BLA. The only exception to immunity is for claims involving “willful misconduct” as defined in the PREP Act. Detailed information related to legal immunity can be found here and here. If you are concerned about potential liability, we recommend speaking with your attorney directly.

Healthcare personnel can use this CDC tool to receive personalized health check-ins after they receive a COVID-19 vaccine, and should encourage all COVID-19 vaccine recipients to participate. V-safe also provides second vaccine dose reminders if needed, and telephone follow-up to anyone who reports medically significant adverse events.

The Georgia Department of Public Health is partnering with the Georgia Poison Center and PunchAlert to provide you with the latest alerts, information, and recommendations from Public Health. PunchAlert is free and allows you to receive instant updates regarding COVID-19. Text COVIDGAHCP to 77297 for provider updates and COVIDGAGEN to 77297 for general updates.

Daily COVID vaccine inventory reporting is required by the CDC. Additionally, the CDC is now directing the public to use VaccineFinder, a searchable database, to find locations offering COVID-19 vaccine. VaccineFinder allows providers to list their on-hand vaccine inventory, vaccination locations, contact and appointment information. Providers will be responsible for registering for VaccineFinder and uploading inventory and managing the publicly displayed information each day. For more information about VaccineFinder and the onboarding process, please review additional resources available at: https://vaccinefinder.org/covid-provider-resources.

Provider enrollment webinars will be held on Wednesday, October 13th at 12pm EDT and Wednesday, October 27th at 5 pm EDT.

VMS training webinars will be hosted on Tuesday, October 12th at 12pm EDT and Thursday, October 14th at 12pm EDT. Please email [email protected]@dph.ga.gov to register.

IAC recently created its Ask the Experts: COVID-19 web page to answer questions about the administration of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines authorized for emergency use by the FDA and recommended by CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. This Ask the Experts web page also provides links to CDC web pages for guidance. The Ask the Experts: COVID-19 web page will grow with more Q&As as additional information becomes available and whenever new vaccines are authorized for use.

There is no data on the impact of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines on either the tuberculin skin test (TST) (administered by intradermal placement of 0.1 cc of purified protein derivative) or the interferon gamma release assay (IGRA). There is no immunologic reason to believe that a TST or blood draw for IGRA will impact the effectiveness of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines. Please refer to this ‘COVID mRNA vaccines, TST, and IGRA’ letter for additional information.

CDC created new, web-on-demand, self-paced COVID-19 Vaccine Training Modules for Healthcare Professionals who will be administering Moderna and Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccines. These modules will provide information to healthcare professionals about COVID-19 vaccines manufactured by Moderna, Inc. and Pfizer Pharmaceuticals based on the recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and guidance from the manufacturer. The target audience includes: Administrators, CHES certified health educators, Physicians, Epidemiologists, LPNs, LVNs, Medical assistants, medical students, NPs, nurse technicians, other health educators, Pharmacists, PAs, program managers RNs. Continuing Education (CE) credits are also available.

Preparing for the Potential Management of Anaphylaxis at COVID-19 Vaccination Sites – Locations administering COVID-19 vaccines should adhere to this CDC guidance for use of COVID-19 vaccines, including screening recipients for contraindications and precautions, having the necessary supplies available to manage anaphylaxis, implementing the recommended post-vaccination observation periods, and immediately treating suspected cases of anaphylaxis with intramuscular injection of epinephrine.