Episode 3 - COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution

With news of progress in the manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines, attention now focuses on last mile distribution to get shots in arms.  In the words of one of this month's guests, we're witness to the "largest new product launch in human history."  This launch challenges vaccine supply chains in unprecedented ways and has required supply chain leaders to forge new partnerships across public and private sectors to keep pace with demand.  In this week's episode, our hosts Steve Tracey and Irv Grossman and our guests discuss the monumental task of scaling the supply chain for mass vaccinations, break down some of the complexities around where we stand now, discuss lessons learned during the vaccine rollout thus far, and preview the road ahead.

In this episode, we welcome two expert guests from the MITRE Corporation:

Cynthia K. Hansen, PhD is a Senior Principal for Biosecurity and Equity in the Health Federally Funded Research & Development Center (FFRDC) operated by the MITRE Corporation. She leads efforts to accelerate COVID-19 response & recovery, strengthen global health security and expand relationships with agency missions aligned with the biosecurity and equity objectives of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Taylor Wilkerson is a Principal Health Systems Engineer in the Health System Engineering group at MITRE Corporation. Taylor has over 20 years of experience with public and private sector supply chain improvement and engineering. His experience includes strategy, process design, system architecture and requirements, risk management, sustainability, decision support, and innovation management. He has worked with several public sector clients including HHS, VA, DoD, CDC, DOS, USAID and USDA.