Over 800,000 AstraZeneca doses expire as Kenyans keep off jab
Health CAS Dr Mercy Mwangangi giving updates on the status of Covid 19 in the country. She announced that over 800, 000 doses of AstraZeneca Covid vaccine have expired across the country.
Over 800,000 AstraZeneca vaccines have expired, Health CAS Mercy Mwangangi said while giving updates on the status of Covid 19 in the country.
Nakuru, Busia and Kajiado counties have the highest expired vaccines, coming as the country recorded a drop in vaccination from an average of 52,000 a day to about 30, 000.
“So far, only 270, 000 people have turned up to get the booster doses. We continue to witness vaccine hesitancy following rumours on fertility and further misinformation,” Dr. Mwangangi said.
She added: “If Kenyans do not show up and get vaccinated in the next three weeks, another 1 million Johnson & Johnson vaccines will expire.”
The expired AstraZeneca were received in the country in January this year from COVAX.
According to Dr Mwangangi Kenyans preference a certain type of vaccine living out AstraZeneca to expire.
“Some people demanded certain types of vaccines and when they were offered AstraZeneca they declined,” she said.
To ensure the 1 million J&J does not go into waste, the ministry has taken measures like conducting campaigns, outreaches, timely redistributions of doses from counties with low consumptions to those with higher consumptions.
The CAS said that the country will not be accepting vaccines with less than four months shelf live to avoid such instances where vaccines expire.
