One in 850 doses of COVID-19 vaccines administered in the U.S. through March 29 have had to be thrown out because they were unused, spoiled, expired or wasted, according to CDC data obtained by CNN.
The data showed that a total of 182,874 COVID-19 vaccine doses were reported as wasted by 35 states, 17 pharmacies and three federal agencies through March 29. That makes up less than 1 percent of the 155 million doses that were administered by that date, CNN reported.
The number is likely an underestimate, however, as 15 states didn't report any vaccine waste to the CDC. It doesn't appear there is a federal requirement for vaccine waste reporting, according to CNN.
Vaccine waste can be reported through either the CDC's Vaccine Tracking System, called VTrckS, or the HHS Tiberius system. The data the CDC gave to CNN was based on waste reported through VTrckS, and the agency said "Tiberius would have the most updated vaccine wastage information," CNN reported.
Pharmacies accounted for three-quarters of the reported vaccine waste, with about 137,000 doses. CVS told CNN that "nearly all" of the vaccines wasted occurred during the federal long-term care facility program "due to issues with transportation restrictions, limitations on redirecting unused doses and other factors."
CVS told CNN that vaccine waste in retail stores has been "extremely limited," with less than 1 in 1,000 doses wasted.
The CDC told CNN that some waste is expected with any vaccine.
Read the full article here.
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