Thousands of expiring AstraZeneca doses not yet sent to pharmacies, province says
by Lucas Casaletto
Last Updated May 27, 2021 at 1:42 pm EDT
A man makes his way past signage to a mass COVID-19 vaccination centre at the University of Toronto s Mississauga campus during the COVID-19 pandemic in Mississauga, Ont., on Monday, May 17, 2021. Starting tomorrow every resident aged 18-plus will be able to book their vaccine appointment in Ontario. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
Ontario says thousands of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines expiring Monday are still undergoing quality checks before being sent to pharmacies and doctors’ offices.
It says 12,000 doses are expected to be cleared tomorrow, and others are still being reviewed.
TORONTO Quality checks held up the delivery of thousands of soon-to-expire Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines in Ontario on Thursday, as pharmacists set to administer the doses expressed frustration over the delay.
A stockpile of 45,000 doses expires Monday, while 10,000 more expire at the end of June. The province said 12,000 doses were expected to pass quality checks on Friday and others were still under review.
A spokeswoman for the health minister said the checks were needed because storage data for some of the doses was incomplete. No dose will be sent that isn t deemed to be safe, said Alexandra Hilkene.
Ontario stopped giving out first doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine earlier this month after saying it was linked to an increased risk of a rare but serious blood clotting disorder.
Published Thursday, May 27, 2021 11:01AM EDT Last Updated Thursday, May 27, 2021 1:09PM EDT Nearly 100 Toronto pharmacies will receive limited supplies of the AstraZeneca vaccine today, just four days ahead of their expiry. Individuals who received their first dose of the vaccine between March 10 and March 19 were made eligible to receive an early second dose on Tuesday as the province scrambled to use up 31,000 doses that are set to expire on May 31. The problem is that the delivery of the vaccine to most pharmacies has been delayed due to a quality assurance process that has been put in place to ensure the vials didn’t spoil while sitting in refrigerators at pharmacies across Ontario over the last two weeks.
Published Wednesday, May 26, 2021 1:02PM EDT Last Updated Wednesday, May 26, 2021 6:12PM EDT More than 100 pharmacies in Toronto are yet to receive promised supply of the AstraZeneca vaccine and the head of the Ontario Pharmacists Association says that the delay could result in some doses expiring before they can be used. Individuals who received an AstraZeneca vaccine between March 10 and March 19 became eligible to book an appointment for a second dose earlier this week but Ontario Pharmacists Association CEO Justin Bates tells CP24 that most participating pharmacies in Toronto have not actually received their vaccines as of yet, other than select Shoppers Drug Mart locations that have their own distribution network.