Wasted vaccines in Missouri and Kansas; new information reveals missed opportunities
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KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV ) — Vaccines are precious and KCTV5 knows many of you would love one, but there is no shot available.
We’ve been tracking the vaccine and where shots are going, especially if they go into the trash.
This information is supposed to be tracked in every state, so there are records. Missouri’s information was eventually released to us as “Inventory Adjustment.”
Missouri’s records reveal 400 shots are being returned to Moderna after arriving in Cape Girardeau due how they were transported.
It’s unclear how quickly those shots will be replaced in an intertwining federal and state system where vaccines are precious.
Missouri’s data reveals minor losses, which occurred a few shots at a time:
“Wasted 4 at end of day, no viable patient to give.”
“Vial punctured. 1 dose give. The other 9 patients did not make it here in time, vaccine ended up being wasted.”
Waste is something Governor Parson said he would be disappointed to learn about and he believes Missouri is doing better than most.
“I would be disappointed if I learned there’s a lot of waste out there but what we know of, as I speak to you today — very, very little waste,” Missouri Governor Parson said.
103 shots have been wasted in Kansas. Waste is happening a shot here or there due to people not showing up or medical staff opening vials but not being able to vaccinate others. Sometimes a vial breaks.
The Kansas state spreadsheet reveals 2 entries were a total of 10 shots being wasted with the explanation:
“Open vial but not all dose could be administered.”
Nationwide, some medical professionals have struggled with distributing extra vaccines. They are concerned about giving shots to people who aren’t in open groups tiers.
Some doctors are praised for lacking waste but a Houston doctor was fired after giving vaccinations, which would have spoiled, to people not officially signed up.
The New York Times reports how Dr. Hasan Gokal, drove around the county late at night and gave shots to elderly people in front yards. The last dose went to his wife, who is concerned high risk.
Platte County: No waste, exceeding goals
We requested reports directly from local health departments as part of our reporting.
That showed Platte County Health had zero waste and even was able to draw up an additional sixth shot as authorized by CDC guidelines.
They were able to extract 271 vaccinations from vials that were originally labeled as containing 225.
Taking a closer look at their program revealed the staff was doing extra things to help make vaccination clinics run safely in the cold weather.
They started curb service complete with wheelchairs and blankets for patients.
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