A pharmacist discovered on Tuesday evening that a refrigeration unit at the Soka University site with bottles of the Pfizer vaccine was operating slightly outside the recommended temperature range.
That prompted precautions as the site set aside the dose supply for the day. On Wednesday, it remained unclear for much of the day whether or not all or part of the day’s stock should be thrown away.
The site of Aliso Viejo normally dispenses about 3,000 doses of vaccine per day.
That was especially concerning at a time when vaccine supplies remain limited and in high demand, as the coronavirus continues to infect thousands of people in California every day – and as new, more infectious variants become more common in the state.
But late in the day, news came that brought a sigh of relief: after consulting the manufacturer, they concluded that the cooling problem was not enough to harm the doses and that they could still be dispensed.
“After reviewing the details, the manufacturer advised that the temperature variation did not impair the safety or efficacy of the vaccine and confirmed that the vaccine is safe to deliver under normal protocol,” officials said in a written statement.
While the affected doses had been set aside, additional doses had been brought in and all scheduled appointments were kept, officials said.
The Soka site, which opened Jan. 23, is what the province calls a super POD, or issue point, capable of making thousands of appointments in one day.
RELATED: Orange County Opens Second Vaccination Super Site
According to data from last week, the province had administered the first doses of vaccine to more than 196,000 people and the second doses to about 46,000 people.
Information on vaccination and appointment scheduling for Orange County are available here at Othena.com.
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