Reasons why doses may be marked as wasted include a cracked vial, an error diluting the vaccine, a freezer malfunction<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/b><\/p>\n
THURSDAY, Sept. 2, 2021 (HealthDay News) — At least 15 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been thrown away in the United States since March 1, government data show.<\/p>\n
That is a far greater amount than previously known, but it is still just a small fraction of the total doses administered in this country, according to NBC News<\/em>. The information is self-reported by pharmacies, states, and other vaccine providers but does not include some states and federal providers, and it also does not explain the reasons why doses were thrown away.<\/p>\n Four national pharmacy chains each reported more than 1 million wasted doses, led by Walgreens with 2.6 million — the most of any pharmacy, state, or other vaccine provider — followed by CVS (2.3 million), Walmart (1.6 million), and Rite Aid (1.1 million), NBC News<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n There are numerous reasons why doses may be marked as wasted, from a cracked vial or an error diluting the vaccine to a freezer malfunction to more doses in a vial than people who want them. A wastage report can also happen when a vial contains fewer doses than it should, NBC News<\/em> said.<\/p>\n As of Tuesday, 438 million doses have been distributed in the United States, while an additional 111.7 million doses have been sent to other countries since Aug. 3, NBC News<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n