LANSING, Michigan (WXYZ) – Several shipments of the Modern vaccine arriving in Michigan have been compromised due to a storage problem, Michigan State Police reported Tuesday.
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A total of 21 shipments from McKesson Corporation, a pharmaceutical distributor, were affected during transportation on Sunday, January 17th. It was reported that the temperature of the shipments had gone out of range and was getting too cold. Now McKesson is investigating the cause.
This delay adds to problems already with the distribution process in Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
Trying to get the vaccine has not been easy, just trying to get a spot comes down to the luck of the draw. People who want the vaccine are frustrated and worried when they can get it.
“It simply came to our notice then. I haven’t even talked to anyone, ”said Karie Wilson, a professor at Merritt Academy in Macomb County.
Wilson has been trying to get the vaccine as soon as the state entered Phase 1B.
“I called 163 times today and I didn’t even get the recording,” he said.
Wilson says it’s frustrating not being able to book an hour, but it’s even more frustrating not knowing when an hour will open.
“There aren’t enough appointments for everyone to get a vaccine right now,” said De Joneigh Khaldun, chief medical officer of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
Dr. Khaldun appeared on Tuesday 7 UpFront talking about the impact of Moderna’s shipment, which was ruined due to temperature control issues.
“So all of those shipments have actually been shipped with McKesson today and we know they reach those 21 locations,” he said. “I’ll just say the biggest problem we have is that there just aren’t enough vaccines to circulate.”
Karie Wilson says she understands counties don’t get the doses of vaccine they want, but she says something else needs to be done.
“We can’t even get on a waiting list or anything,” Wilson said. “So I feel like if there was a better system in place, it wouldn’t be so loaded with anxiety, at least we’d feel like we were in the process. We’re on the line of getting a dose essentially.”
Dr. Khaldun says they have been in contact with the Biden administration and have requested more vaccines in Michigan. We will wait to see.
McKesson is now repackaging additional vaccines to ship as a replacement dose. Most of the 21 committed shipments were resent Monday night and the rest will be shipped on Tuesday.
The company says six additional shipments were withheld to check that there were no problems with the vaccine. This can lead to a delay in scheduled vaccinations.
It has been notified to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
“We are committed to accelerating vaccine delivery as we work to achieve our goal of vaccinating 70% of Michiganders over the age of 16 as quickly as possible with the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine,” said Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, in a statement issued Tuesday. “While it is unfortunate that this vaccine cannot be used, we are pleased that the guarantees established to ensure the integrity of the vaccine work. This is the first report of the potentially compromised vaccine during shipment to Michigan and we are working quickly with the distributor to ship the replacement vaccine. “
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