Ominous signs for a flu vaccine shortage next winter? Already?

Describing a scene reminiscent of frenzied calling to Ticketmaster for hard-to-get concert tickets, the Allentown Morning Call reports that Sanofi Pasteur confirmed pre-orders for all 50 million doses of its 2006 flu vaccine inventory, selling out in less than 8 hours. Yes, that's for the next flu season, still 9 months away.

The story explains,

"Sanofi, the only maker taking orders directly from doctors, hospitals and other buyers, doubled the phone lines and online ordering capacity, 'but the outpouring far exceeded our expectations,' [a spokesman] said. Normally, the vaccinemaker receives 1,500 calls a day, but on prebooking day, Lavenda said the number of callers trying to get through reached 400,000 and online hits surged 500 percent.

'We can make 50 million doses, maybe a bit more, but the demand far exceeds that. … We feel bad, but we can't stretch our capacity to meet the entire nation's needs.'"

Before we start heralding a repeat of the 2004 supply problems, it's worth noting that (barring another Chiron debacle) the flu vaccine supply outlook is far healthier this time around. Sanofi is one of four currently licensed manufacturers in the U.S., with a fifth likely to join the market by fall.