Since the pandemic’s beginning, world leaders, health experts, and scientists have joined forces to create safe and efficient Covid-19 vaccines. Many developed countries pre-ordered large quantities of Covid-19 vaccine doses, and suppliers are working hard to meet the demands. At the opposite end are emerging countries that struggle to procure enough doses to vaccinate their populations.
The U.S discarded millions of Covid-19 doses
Most Covid-19 vaccines come in multi-dose vials, meaning that once the vial is opened, health providers have a couple of hours to use the doses inside. This is problematic as many people do not show up for their vaccine appointment and vaccination center workers need to find other people who can get on time to the vaccination site and use the doses. Recent reports mention that millions of Covid-19 doses have been discarded in the U.S and that the FDA is collaborating with vaccine manufacturers to try to reduce the number of doses inside a vial.
More than 15.1 million Covid-19 vaccine doses have been thrown away in the U.S alone
The CDC published data about more than 1 million doses wasted in four pharmaceutical chains at the beginning of the month. NBC News reports that more than 15.1 million doses have been thrown away from the beginning of March up to September.
The U.S is not the only country that has to deal with vaccine doses being discarded. The situation is similar for many European countries where vaccines have expired. It is reported that thousands of doses are destroyed or thrown away as they expire because there were not enough people willing to get vaccinated. To avoid wasting vaccines that save lives, many countries had started donating Covid-19 vaccines before they reached their expiration date.
Another problem involving Covid019 vaccines is connected to vaccine passports. In the U.S, only three Covid19 vaccines are recognized, in Europe, some countries use only four, and there are several Covid-19 vaccines available on the market. Each country should decide which Covid-19 vaccines they want to use internally, but all vaccines should be recognized for international travelers.
