TOKYO (Reuters) – More than 1,000 shots of the coronavirus vaccine were destroyed in Japan after storage temperatures deviated from the required range due to a malfunction of the freezer, the health ministry said on Monday. first case of this type of wasted vaccine.
On February 17, Japan became the last member of the group of the seven leading industrialized countries to begin its vaccine against COVID-19.
So far it has received three shipments of vaccines developed by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech, which account for about 1.4 million shots.
The Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine should be stored at a temperature of about 75 ºC (minus 103 Fahrenheit).
A medical institution reported that the freezer malfunctioned over the weekend, leaving 172 vials of the vaccine useless, or 1,032 doses, according to the ministry.
He declined to identify the name of the medical institution or freezer manufacturer in question, but said the freezer manufacturer would begin investigating the cause of the malfunction on Tuesday.
Kiyoshi Takenaka Reports; Edited by Gareth Jones