Chungnam Completes Installation of Ultra-Low Temperature Vaccine Freezers... Secures 1.79 Million Vaccine Doses and Proceeds with Sequential Vaccinations

Chungnam Governor Yang Seung-jo visited the site of the ultra-low temperature vaccine freezer installation on the 11th to check the progress. Photo by Chungnam Province

[Asia Economy (Hongseong) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam Province has completed the installation of ultra-low temperature vaccine freezers necessary for storing COVID-19 vaccines.

According to the province on the 12th, the ultra-low temperature freezer was first installed at the indoor badminton court in Cheonan, designated by the government as the Central Region Vaccination Center. This freezer will be used to store Moderna and Pfizer vaccines going forward.

The province will conduct vaccinations at 17 vaccination centers and over 700 entrusted medical institutions across 15 cities and counties. Among these, the vaccination centers will administer vaccines equipped with freezers capable of ultra-low temperature storage.

Among the vaccines stored at the vaccination centers, the Pfizer vaccine is known to be the most difficult to manage. This vaccine must be kept at an ultra-low temperature of around minus 70 degrees Celsius, and its shelf life after thawing and dilution is relatively short compared to other vaccines, making storage and distribution challenging, the province explained.

Accordingly, Soonchunhyang University Cheonan Hospital, which will operate the vaccination center, plans to conduct simulation training assuming a 'real situation' by applying vaccination management systems and guidelines in cooperation with the Central Vaccination Center and others.

Meanwhile, the province plans to sequentially secure vaccines for 1.79 million people, including Pfizer vaccines for 320,000 people and AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccines for 640,000 people, through the COVAX facility.

The first vaccination target group includes approximately 46,500 people such as inpatients and residents of nursing hospitals and facilities, as well as workers. The second target group includes about 430,000 people such as users and workers of elderly home welfare facilities, seniors aged 65 and older, medical institution and pharmacy workers, and residents and workers of facilities for the disabled and homeless.

The third group includes adults with chronic diseases and adults aged 50 to 64, military personnel, police, firefighters, and workers in social infrastructure. Subsequently, vaccinations will be carried out sequentially for childcare facilities, pediatric and youth education workers, and adults aged 18 to 49.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.