Florida has wasted more than 4,100 COVID-19 vaccines to date
Losses only account for about .1% of shots administered
Florida has wasted thousands of COVID-19 shots since vaccinations began, and that number is expected to keep growing in the coming months.
and last updated 2021-02-10 18:46:52-05
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. â COVID-19 vaccinations are precious, but Florida has wasted thousands of shots to date. To some, it s unfortunate but expected. Others are challenging the state to do better.
As of Feb. 9, Florida Health reported at least 4,143 shots had been squandered across the state. Officials said in a statement that most were broken either in transit or during use. Other doses spoiled before injection.
Scientific American
Bottlenecks in supply chains and difficult appointment-registration systems are slowing distribution
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The U.S. celebrated when new coronavirus vaccines were developed at record-breaking speed. And in December the candidates from Pfizer and BioNTech and Moderna were quickly approved for emergency use by the Food and Drug Administration. But two months later, only 10 percent of Americans have received at least one shot. And fewer than 3 percent of them have received both of the necessary doses. Many feel frustrated with the slow distribution process and confused about how to sign up for shots. What exactly is making all this take so long?
Finding a vaccine appointment is like hitting the lottery for thousands of Pennsylvanians.
And, in the first six weeks of vaccine distribution, residents in a handful of counties had no chance of getting vaccinated against COVID-19 without leaving their home county.
An analysis of state data found that four rural counties didn’t receive any vaccine doses in the first six weeks of the bungled roll-out, and the majority of doses were sent to health care systems who focused solely on inoculating employees.
More than a third of vaccine doses sent out in Pennsylvania through late January went to three counties: Allegheny, Lehigh and Montgomery, which together are home to 2.4 million people. Removing Philadelphia County from the equation the county receives its vaccine doses directly from the federal government rather than the state those three counties comprise 21.5% of Pennsylvania s population. .
Joe Mahr and Angie Leventis Lourgos
Chicago Tribune (TNS)
Marj Leopardo is 85. Her husband, Sam, is 88. They both have health issues. And their days are now consumed with one thing: the vaccine hunt.
The Crystal Lake couple are, on paper, just the kind of people the government wants at the front of the vaccine line. But they live in a country that’s struggled with the rollout, and in a state that’s struggled more than others.
So that has meant reaching out daily to doctors’ offices, pharmacies, hospitals, the local health department. It has meant their daughter stalks websites to hunt for an elusive open appointment. And they watch others, in other suburbs and other states, snap up shots.