Nearly 12,000 doses of Modern COVID-19 vaccine were ruined en route to Michigan, state officials say

LANSING, Mich. – Michigan officials said 11,900 doses of the Modern COVID-19 vaccine received by the state are ruined and unusable.

“It frustrates me when I know we’re in a race and every shot matters, but that’s not something I can control. It’s not Michigan’s fault, ”Governor Gretchen Whitmer said.

Twenty-one shipments of the Modern Vaccine were rendered unusable due to temperature issues with the distributor. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the vaccine should be stored in a freezer at minus 13 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit. The distributor, McKesson Corporation, told the state that the temperature was out of range and cooling too much, affecting about 12,000 doses.

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In a statement, Dr. Joneigh Kaldhun, chief medical officer of Michigan, said, “This is the first report on the potentially compromised vaccine during shipment to Michigan and we are working quickly with the distributor to have the replacement vaccine shipped.”

McKesson said he “identified the root cause of the problem (it was found that some of the ice packs used to maintain proper temperatures during shipment were too cold) and that steps have been taken to prevent this from happening in the future.” .

State officials said most of the 21 shipments were forwarded Monday night. However, six additional shipments were also retained to ensure that there were no problems with the vaccine. This state warned that scheduled vaccinations at several vendor sites could be delayed.

“I’m sure people who had appointments, which were scheduled at facilities that were supposed to receive these particular shots, felt frustrated at not being able to get them,” Whitmer said.

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