At least five states on Wednesday said that doses of coronavirus vaccines were going to waste as citizens were not showing up to receive t...
At least five states on Wednesday said that doses of coronavirus vaccines were going to waste as citizens were not showing up to receive their shots, mainly due to worries over possible adverse reactions, the Hindustan Times reported.
India authorised two vaccines this month for emergency use at home, Oxford University-AstraZeneca Covishield vaccine, produced by the Serum Institute of India, and Covaxin, a government-backed, indigenous one from Bharat Biotech, whose efficacy is not known.
In case of Covishield, each vial contains 10 doses, while Covaxin has 20. Both vials need to be used up within four hours once opened. This has led to a wastage of doses in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Bihar and Assam, where recipients failed to show up on time, or at all, for their shots.
“On the first day of the vaccination, as we had recorded 100% turnout, we didn’t lose any unit,” Amravati District Health Officer Dilip Ranmale told Hindustan Times. “All the registered 100 health care workers opted for vaccination. However, the next day when only 38 HCWs [healthcare workers] came forward, we lost two doses from the second vial.”
Officials noted that loss of doses was not uniform and more doses of Covaxin had to be thrown away at some locations since they were in vials of 20....
