Jul 08, 2021
Disposal of Vaccines for Workplace Vaccination
TOKYO, July 8, 2021 -- Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (TOKYO: 4519) announced that the Company has to discard some vaccines due to inadequate temperature control during its ongoing workplace COVID-19 vaccination.
As a member of the healthcare industry, we take it very seriously as a betrayal of the trust of society and our stakeholders that we had to dispose of vaccines, a valuable resource for preventing the spread of infection, due to inadequate management systems. We sincerely apologize and will take all necessary measures to prevent any recurrence in the future.
- Summary of the incident
On Tuesday, July 6, at around 11:30 a.m., the person in charge of the workplace vaccination checked the deep freezer used for vaccine storage and discovered abnormal temperature. Subsequently, it was confirmed that the connection of the power adapter was loose and not being energized.
As a result, due to the rise in freezer temperature, 1,600 vaccines manufactured by Moderna became unusable, and the decision was made to dispose of the vaccines. - Preventive measures
The following measures will be thoroughly implemented at each site of our workplace vaccination.
- Ensure that the power connections are secured with tape, etc., and thoroughly checked when they are moved.
- Thorough periodic verification of temperature of freezer, etc.
