'Variant-Targeted' Vaccines Arrive... What About 14 Million Doses of Existing Vaccine Stock?

Additional Vaccinations Allowing 95% of New Recipients to Receive Bivalent Vaccine

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-won] As bivalent vaccines targeting COVID-19 variants are scheduled to begin administration in October, attention is focused on how to utilize the remaining existing vaccines and the vaccines to be introduced.

The bivalent vaccines targeting Omicron will be used starting this winter vaccination season. Moderna's BA.1-targeting bivalent vaccine, "Moderna Spikevax bivalent 2nd dose," arrived sequentially in South Korea with 805,000 doses on the 15th and 806,000 doses on the 17th. Once the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety grants national release approval, it is expected to be used for additional vaccinations from October. The quarantine authorities announced that they will prepare and announce detailed vaccination implementation plans by the end of this month.

Once the improved vaccines effective against variants begin to be administered, the utilization of existing vaccines may decline due to preference. Most COVID-19 vaccinations currently conducted in South Korea are additional doses that can use bivalent vaccines. Reviewing the vaccination status for the week of the 8th to the 14th, 41,357 people received the 3rd or 4th doses (additional doses), accounting for about 95% of total vaccinations. The number of people receiving the 1st or 2nd doses (primary doses) was 2,364.

Currently, South Korea's COVID-19 vaccine stockpile stands at 14,055,000 doses. By type, there are 7,892,000 doses of Pfizer, 2,738,000 doses of Moderna, 1,984,000 doses of Janssen, 665,000 doses of Novavax, and 608,000 doses of SK Bioscience's Skycovione. In addition, a significant amount of vaccines is scheduled to be additionally introduced domestically. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, 109.2 million doses of vaccines will be additionally imported, among which all the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines to be introduced will be bivalent vaccines. Excluding these, 37.06 million doses of Novavax and 9.39 million doses of SK Bioscience vaccines will be additionally imported into the country.

If bivalent vaccines are widely used for vaccination, some vaccines may be discarded due to expiration. The shelf life of COVID-19 vaccines is about six months to one year. According to the office of Assemblyman Cho Myung-hee of the Health and Welfare Committee of the National Assembly, approximately 5.91 million doses of vaccines have been discarded from February last year to this month. This includes 587,662 vials of vaccines in vial form and 1,442,245 prefilled syringes of Novavax vaccines. 98% of the discarded vaccines were disposed of due to expiration.

The authorities are trying to reduce vaccine wastage by donating vaccines overseas, but the 4.86 million doses donated to nine countries from last year to this year are fewer than the discarded vaccines. The 4.83 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccines received through COVAX were re-donated to COVAX before being introduced domestically. Assemblyman Cho pointed out, "Since a huge budget is spent on vaccine imports, it is necessary to examine whether there was appropriate evidence and review regarding vaccine demand and supply."

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