FRANKFURT, Dec. 27 (Reuters) – Germany’s coronavirus vaccination campaign was delayed in several cities on Sunday after medical personnel discovered possible irregularities in the cooling of the shot produced by BioNTech and Pfizer.
The European Union launched a massive COVID-19 round of vaccination on Sunday with retirees and medics lining up to capture the first photos of a pandemic that has paralyzed economies and claimed more than 1.7 million lives worldwide.
“Reading the temperature loggers in the cool boxes raised doubts about compliance with the requirements for the cold chain,” the Lichtenfels district office in northern Germany’s largest state of Bavaria said in a statement.
The Pfizer vaccine, which uses new so-called mRNA technology, must be stored at ultra-low temperatures of about -70 degrees Celsius (-112 ° F) to remain effective before shipping to distribution centers.
Pfizer has designed special shipping containers that are filled with dry ice to prevent the vaccine from spoiling during shipping. Shots can be stored in an ultra-low temperature freezer for up to six months, or five days at 2 ° C to 8 ° C – a type of refrigeration commonly available in hospitals.
In addition to Lichtenfels, the northern Bavarian cities of Coburg, Kronach, Kulmbach, Hof, Bayreuth and Wunsiedel also kept their distance from inoculating humans after uncertainty arose as to whether the cold chain had been maintained.
“Vaccination against the coronavirus is not about who vaccinates the fastest or who administers the most doses. Safety and conscientious work in the interests of the population has the highest priority, ”said Oliver Baer, district manager of the Hof district.
Similar problems have also slowed the vaccination campaign in the southern Bavarian city of Augsburg, the Merkur daily reported.
The vaccination campaign in Germany officially started on Sunday when residents of old people’s homes were vaccinated. The federal government plans to distribute more than 1.3 million doses to local health authorities by the end of this year and approximately 700,000 doses per week as of January.
Vaccinations will be free for everyone from mid-2021 and will be available as soon as the priority groups are expected to be vaccinated.
“This makes us proud and, above all, confident that we can overcome this pandemic – because vaccination is paving the way out of the crisis,” Health Minister Jens Spahn said in a tweet. (Reporting by Arno Schuetze; edited by David Clarke)