/Covid-19 death toll tops 403,596 as Joe Biden takes office

Covid-19 death toll tops 403,596 as Joe Biden takes office

42m ago / 4:23 PM UTC

Nearly 12,000 Moderna vaccines ruined en route to Michigan, health officials say

Almost 12,000 Covid-19 vaccines were ruined while en route to Michigan due to a temperature control issue, state health officials said during a press conference on Tuesday. 

Twenty-one shipments of the vaccine, made by Moderna and distributed by The McKesson Corporation,  reportedly got too cold and spoiled, according to NBC News affiliate WILX. 

The shipment of 11,900 doses went out on Jan. 17, according to the Detroit Free Press. 

“That frustrates me when I know we are in a race and every vaccine matters,” said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer during a press conference on Tuesday. “But that’s not something that I could control. It’s not the state of Michigan’s fault.”

Additional shipments of the Moderna vaccine were held back as officials worked to make sure they could be safely transported, The Detroit Free Press reported. However, the late shipments could lead to a delay for those who had scheduled vaccines at sites expecting those doses.

“I’m certain that people who had appointments scheduled at facilities that were supposed to get those particular shots were frustrated because they weren’t able to get them,” Whitmer said. “That’s part of the bumpy road that we are all experiencing nationwide.”

The Detroit Free Press reported that none of the spoiled vaccines had been give to anyone and that McKesson would investigate what led to the temperature failure. 

One year ago, the CDC announced the 1st case in U.S.

TORONTO — Canada won’t be getting any Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccines next week and 50 percent fewer than expected over the next month, officials said Tuesday, prompting the leader of Canada’s most populous province to ask President-elect Joe Biden to share a million doses from Pfizer’s Michigan plant.

Maj. Gen. Dany Fortin, who is leading Canada’s logistical rollout and distribution of vaccines, called it a major reduction, but said Pfizer is still expected to meet its contractual obligation to ship four million doses to Canada by the end of March.

U.S. pharmaceutical company Pfizer confirmed last week it would temporarily reduce deliveries to Europe and Canada of its COVID-19 vaccine while it upgrades production capacity at its plant in Puurs, Belgium. Pfizer’s Belgian plant supplies all shots delivered outside the U.S.

“Our American friends, help us out,” Ford said. “You have a new president, no more excuses. Help us out.”