CVS and Walgreens, authorized by the federal government to vaccinate people against the coronavirus, constitute the majority of wasted vaccine doses, according to a new report.
The Kaiser Health News, citing data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reported Monday 182,874 wasted doses as of late March, with CVS and Walgreens accounting for 128,500 of those combined.
CVS spokesperson Michael DeAngelis blamed the wasted doses on “issues with transportation restrictions, limitations on redirecting unused doses, and other factors.”
“Despite the inherent challenges, our teams were able to limit waste to approximately one dose per onsite vaccination clinic,” he said, KHN reported.
Walgreens said its wastage resulted to less than 0.5% of vaccines the company administered through March 29, which totaled 3 million shots in long-term care facilities and 5.2 million more through the federal government’s retail pharmacy partnership.
“Our goal has always been ensuring every dose of vaccine is used,” Walgreen spokesperson Kris Lathan said in an email, KHN reported.
Lathan said before scheduled clinics, Walgreens would base doses it would need on registrations “which minimized excess and reduced overestimations.”
