Korea's problem with vaccines is now a glut

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Korea's problem with vaccines is now a glut

Used vials of the Pfizer vaccine [NEWS1]

Used vials of the Pfizer vaccine [NEWS1]

 
With inoculation rates high, Korea is struggling with a surplus of Covid-19 vaccines.
 
Authorities are seeking to extend the shelf life of Pfizer and other vaccines by three months to use them as boosters, and looking for ways to send vaccines to countries that need them.
 
According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Monday, Korea had as of Sunday midnight 15,013,000 doses of vaccines: 7,906,000 Pfizer shots, 183,000 doses of Pfizer vaccines for children, 3,346,000 Moderna, 1,986,000 Janssen and 1,592,000 Novavax.
 
In Korea, the vaccination rate for first inoculations has reached 87.8 percent and for second inoculations 86.8 percent. For third shots, the rate is 64.7 percent. 
 
With so many people vaccinated, the number of new vaccinations per day is only about 100,000. Even fourth shots, which recently started for people over 60, have not led to a surge in shots. Only 20.8 percent of people aged over 60 have gotten a fourth shot.
 
There are a number of reasons for the sharp drop in vaccinations aside from Korea's general success. Natural immunity is one: many people got the Omicron variant of Covid-19, survived, and are less concerned with getting booster shots. Since the Omicron wave, skepticism has grown about the shots' efficacy because there have been so many breakthrough infections, or people getting the disease even after being vaccinated. 
 
Although authorities are still encouraging vaccination to reduce the risk of serious illness and death, there's less fear of the disease and also the inconveniences it once posed. Korea has lifted quarantine requirements for people who test positive. 
 
Given this situation, vaccine stocks are not going down. 
 
To find a use for the vaccines, authorities formed a task force between related ministries last month and are reviewing donations to other countries, but have not found suitable recipients.
 
An official from the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters said, “We have tried to gather information on which countries may want to receive the spare doses through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but the overall vaccination rate across the globe has risen, so we are having trouble finding recipients.” Countries with poor health care systems have difficulties accepting doses due to a lack of refrigeration facilities to store them.
 
A total of 141.9 million more doses are expected to arrive in Korea by the end of this year, and authorities are discussing with pharmaceutical companies delaying deliveries of some, if not all, to next year.
 
“It is difficult for pharmaceutical companies to delay the vaccines as we may want,” said an official of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters.
 
Authorities point out they need a certain amount of vaccines in case a new variant emerges in the second half of the year. If an improved vaccine against variants is available, Korea will be automatically supplied with such a vaccine according to the contracts it signed.
 
Authorities are pursuing another option, which is to extend the shelf life of the vaccines.
 
“Pfizer vaccines’ shelf life in Korea is currently nine months, but it has been extended to 12 months overseas,” said a spokesperson for the headquarters. “In Korea, an application for changing the shelf life of vaccines has been received from pharmaceutical companies and is being reviewed.”
 
Pfizer was initially granted a shelf life of six months, then it was extended to nine months. The new application would be to extend the shelf life for an additional three months.
 
“If the application is approved, after reviewing safety and efficacy, it will be applied to newly imported vaccines, but we will consult with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on whether to apply the change to existing vaccines as long as there are no scientific problems,” said a spokesperson for the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
 
The Moderna vaccine is currently licensed for a shelf life of seven months, but it has been extended to nine months overseas.
 
New cases of Covid-19 have plateaued, with 43,925 new cases Tuesday. This brings the total of positive-tested cases in Korea to 17,658,794. Seriously ill cases remained at 383 for Tuesday, and there were 29 deaths.  

BY HWANG SOO-YEON, LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]
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