Tetanus and Diphtheria Vaccine Shortage May Last Long

Historically, two tetanus and diphtheria (Td) vaccines approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have been available for use in the United States:

These Td vaccines are TdVax, manufactured by MassBiologics and exclusively distributed by Grifols. And Tenivac®, manufactured by Sanofi.

On March 1, 2024, the U.S. CDC confirmed that MassBiologics, a nonprofit, had discontinued production of TdVax, a vaccine indicated for active immunization to prevent tetanus and diphtheria. This vaccine is approved for use in persons seven and older.

While Sanofi is taking steps to augment its availability of Tenivac in the U.S., despite these efforts, the CDC anticipates that the vaccine supply will be constrained during 2024.

The CDC confirmed temporary ordering controls are in place in the public and private sectors to help manage the gap in supply.

The limited supply of Td vaccine needs to be preserved for those with a contraindication to receiving pertussis-containing vaccines. The CDC has developed guidance to assist vaccination providers, which will remain until the temporary ordering controls for the Td vaccine end.

As an alternative, Diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis (Tdap) vaccines are currently available without supply constraints. Tdap vaccines include Sanofi’s Adacel and GSK’s Boostrix. 

For the full text of these vaccine recommendations, see DTaP/Tdap/Td; visit this CDC link.