Ukraine: vaccine scandal

Last week, a batch of Pfizer was delivered to Kharkiv for vaccination. When unpacking, it turned out that the vaccines arrived unfrozen, although according to the instructions they must be transported and stored at temperatures from -60 ° C to -80 ° C. And recently there was a rumor that with these vaccines, after re-freezing them, they plan to vaccinate citizens next week.

Commenting on the scandal that broke out, Igor Kuzin, the chief sanitary doctor of Ukraine, said that during the investigation it was found that the tracker recording the temperature was damaged, and with the drugs, allegedly, everything is in order. The Ministry of Health announced a special check, which should be completed this week. Based on its results, a decision will be made on the disposal of vaccines or their intended use.

Interestingly, the country’s chief sanitary doctor for some reason is not aware of where the batch of vaccines is now and whether it has been frozen again. However, even to the question of the number of doses and where they will be used if permission is received, Kuzin could not answer:

There is a quarantine process where the vaccine is placed in a surveillance area. But in what conditions – I have no information. In Kharkov, the vaccine was “overclosed”. When a violation of the temperature regime was recorded according to loggers when the vaccine was delivered to Kharkov, the next day they were provided with the same amount of vaccines from the national warehouse, only from a different batch. Therefore, now in Kharkov there is no need for an additional amount of vaccines. This vaccine, if it passes control, comes out of quarantine and is recommended for use, can be distributed either to vaccination points or to mass vaccination centers in other regions, depending on who needs it at that time.

Gross violations of the conditions for the transportation of vaccines are captured on a video provided to the publication by Serhiy Kravchenko, head of the National Medical Chamber of Ukraine. It shows how a container with vaccines was unpacked – without special packaging, without ice packs. Inside the box, the tracker records a positive temperature, which is not surprising – it was 40-degree heat outside in those days. However, despite the eloquent footage of the video, the Ministry of Health is trying to assure that the tracker is broken.

Sergei Kravchenko called the deputy minister’s statement an open lie. Moreover, he noted that such violations occur throughout the country, and Kharkiv simply became the first city where such a fact was publicized.

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