PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Two Portland hospitals have dumped more than three dozen doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and state health officials were initially unaware of the wasted shots, according to a report.
Oregon Health & Science University lost 15 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine after a vial broke and two were improperly mixed, reports The Oregonian / OregonLive. Wednesday. Legacy Health wasted 27 doses when they could not find health workers to take excess vaccination before it expired. The vaccine must be kept at ultra-cold temperatures to be effective and must be administered quickly.
The wasted doses reflect only 0.07% of the vaccines administered so far in Oregon.
It is unclear whether doses in other parts of Oregon went to waste.
The Oregon Health Authority said they heard about the wasted doses in the newspaper and then confirmed it with OHSU and Legacy, despite Legacy saying the information was reported to the state earlier as needed.
The state on Wednesday reported 764 new confirmed or suspected cases of coronavirus and eight more deaths.
More than 60,000 doses have been administered, but nearly 75% of the doses delivered to the state – about 225,000 – still have to make it into the arms of Oregonians. Government Kate Brown asked for 12,000 vaccinations a day by the end of next week, but the state is still far from the target with 2,800 doses given on Wednesday.