VACCINE WASTAGE AVOIDED





Trinidad and Tobago has avoided any major wastage of the AstraZeneca (AZ) Covid-19 vaccines.

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said yesterday that only a small percentage of the vaccines have remained unused past the expiry date.

T&T received more than 270,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine through the COVAX facility, as well as donations from the governments of Barbados and Canada. Doses received from the third ­COVAX shipment were due to expire at the end of November.

Speaking during yesterday’s virtual news conference, Deyalsingh expressed satisfaction that only a small amount of the vaccines were left in stock past the expiration date.

99% utilised

“We got in 277,200 and only .67 per cent of that or 1,870 would have expired, which is really good,” he said.

“It means almost all or 99.3 per cent of the AstraZeneca doses have been used, which is absolutely phenomenal.”

In September, Deyalsingh had expressed concern with the low vaccine uptake rate, and had said the Government would be seeking to give away the vaccines to other countries to prevent them from expiring and having to be discarded.

The expiration date for the Pfizer vaccines is now approaching. In August, T&T received over 300,000 ­doses of the Pfizer vaccine from the United States government, which were initially set to expire at the end of November as well.

However, the World Health Organisation and Pan American Health Organisation have since approved an extension of three months, allowing for the vaccines to be used until February 2022.

The Johnson & Johnson and Sinopharm vaccines are due to expire in 2023.





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