ZCZC
BFF-21
HEALTH-VIRUS-EU-SPAIN
Pfizer delays vaccine deliveries to 8 EU nations: Spain
MADRID, Dec 28, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Pfizer has postponed the delivery of new
batches of its coronavirus vaccine to eight European nations including Spain,
the Spanish health ministry said Monday, a day after the EU began its
immunisation campaign.
The Spanish branch of Pfizer informed Madrid on Sunday night of the delay
in shipments to the eight nations due to a “problem in the loading and
shipment process” at its plant in Belgium, the health ministry said in a
statement.
It did not specify which European nations aside from Spain were affected.
Pfizer has informed the ministry that the problem “was already resolved”
but the next delivery of vaccines “will be a few hours late” and arrive in
Spain on Tuesday, a day later than expected, the statement said.
Asked about the delay during an interview with radio Ser, Health Minister
Salvador Illa said it was due to a problem “linked to the control of the
temperature” of the shipments which was “apparently fixed”.
The vaccine must be stored at ultra-low temperatures of about -70 degrees
Celsius (-112 Fahrenheit) before being shipped to distribution centres in
specially designed cool boxes filled with dry ice.
Once out of ultra-low temperature storage, the vaccine must be kept at 2
Celsius to 8 Celsius to remain effective for up to five days.
Spain is scheduled to received 350,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech
coronavirus vaccine per week over the next three months.
Most European Union nations began their immunisation campaigns against
the virus this weekend with the Pfizer-BioNTech jab, beginning with the
elderly, health care workers and politicians.
BSS/AFP/IJ/1630 hrs