Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azhar said the problem with Pfizer’s corona virus vaccine was not the need for ancillary frost storage, but the large amount of 975 doses per package.
Azhar said in a call on Monday that the media often questioned Pfizer’s low-cold chain of the corona virus vaccine. The vaccine should be stored at a temperature of minus 70 degrees Celsius (minus 94 F) or below.
To handle that problem, and others that may arise during transportation, Pfizer specially designed heat-controlled heat ships using dry ice to control temperature. In addition, the containers will use GPS-enabled heat sensors with control towers to monitor the location and temperature of each vaccine export.
Dry ice is poured into a box containing the Pfizer-Bioentech Covit-19 vaccine because it will be delivered on Sunday, December 13, 2020, at Mitch.
(AP Photo / Mori Cash, Pool)
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However, Azhar said Pfizer’s 975-dose packaging was a real barrier. He went so far as to call the sub-freeze barriers a “misconception”.
“I get a lot of questions from the media about the Pfizer vaccine and the ultra-low cold chain around it,” he said.
A Pfizer spokesman previously addressed the vaccine’s cold temperature storage requirements in an email to Fox News: “Our distribution is built on a flexible time-system that sends frozen vials to the vaccination site.”
Boxes containing Pfizer-Bioentech Covit-19 Vaccine, Sunday, December 13, 2020, Mich., Bortage, Mich.
(AP Photo / Mori Cash, Pool)
Earlier reports cited the logistics challenge imposed on sophisticated and rural hospitals and concerns about the lack of equipment needed to handle the sub-freezing needs of developing countries. Butt Azhar told reporters that the vaccine could be sent to rural areas.
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The vaccine is given in dry ice and remains stable for about five days. The FDA emergency approval is still pending. [in a] Small package, regular freezer for storage capabilities. ”
“There is nothing in the nature of the Pfizer vaccine or distribution, they are blocking use … you need to make sure you are using those doses within the relevant time frame,” he said.
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Peter Aidken of Fox News contributed to this report.