Regarding the new corona vaccine, it was found that there is a large amount of surplus in the moderna vaccine prepared by Osaka City, and it is a policy to discard about 80,000 doses that will soon reach the expiration date.
He explained that the background is that there are many people who want a Pfizer vaccine and that the third vaccination has not progressed.
Osaka City will receive about 300,000 times of Moderna vaccine from the national government in late January for the third inoculation of the new corona vaccine, and will expire on the 25th of this month.
It was found that about 80,000 of these doses are not expected to be used by the deadline in the city, and that other local governments are planning to dispose of them because they tend to have surplus vaccines made by Moderna.
Regarding the large amount of surplus of the Moderna vaccine, the city has many people who want to get the Pfizer vaccine, and only about half of the subjects have completed the third vaccination. Explains that is in the background.
Mayor Matsui told reporters, "The country prepares vaccines for all people, but there are so many people who do not hit them. Vaccines have a deadline and must be discarded when the deadline is reached. ".
Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno "As little vaccine as possible"
At a press conference, Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno said, "I am aware that there are cases where even if a vaccine with a short expiration date is used, it will still lead to disposal. We will promote vaccination to local governments and continue to use vaccines with a short expiration date. I would like to see as few vaccines as possible discarded. "
He explained that he has no plans to know the amount of vaccines that have been discarded or will be discarded by the local government from the viewpoint of reducing the burden on the inoculation site.
On the other hand, reporters asked if it was possible to extend the expiration date, but "Is the quality maintained when the vaccine is stored for a certain period of time? Based on the data collected by companies that manufacture and sell vaccines. It will be decided through the procedure. We are aware that the Moderna vaccine is currently valid for 9 months and will be handled based on this. "