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Fears 220,000 Vaccine Doses Ma...

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Fears 220,000 Vaccine Doses May Go To Waste

Laura Donnelly
Laura Donnelly

12:54 17 Jan 2022


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The HSE is urging anyone who wants a booster to come forward this week if possible.

It's in an effort to reduce the risk of wasting thousands of vaccines that are due to expire soon.

It's estimated up to 220,000 doses will have to binned by the end of the month.

Head of the Vaccination Programme Damien McCallion says once vaccines are sent out to GPs, mass vaccination centres and pharmacies, they have a 30 day shelf life.

The high case numbers over Christmas means many people now have to wait three months to get a booster, which is contributing to the issue of vaccines going to waste.

Chair of the GP committee of the IMO Dr Denis McCauley says reducing the time to one month wouldn't be an effective solution, and also says there's unlikely enough time left to send the doses abroad, before they expire.

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