Ministry explains expired COVID-19 vaccine
Tsaone Basimanebotlhe | Wednesday September 14, 2022 16:01
According to Ministry’s spokesperson Dr Christopher Nyanga, the ministry is currently content with the cooperation of parents in allowing their children to get COVID-19 vaccination.
However, the Ministry has dismissed reports that it is using any expired COVID-19 vaccines on people. This came after reports that some parents were not comfortable with their children being given a vaccine that was alleged to have expired in July 2022.
“it is not correct that the Ministry is using any expired COVID-19 vaccines on people. That will be illegal, unethical, unacceptable and impermissible. What happened is that sometime back, some vaccine manufacturer wrote to all countries that bought vaccines from them indicating that they have taken a decision to extend the shelf life of certain vaccine batches by three months. This communication was to all countries including Botswana. This is a common practice in health where manufacturers can take a decision to extend or reduce shelf life of certain medications on the basis of ongoing research and continuous monitoring of the product,” Dr Nyanga said.
He further added that the manufacturer can also take a decision to recall certain medication adding that it is an ethical, permissible and acceptable practice. Dr Nyanga stated that: "It is not the use of expired vaccines or medications as some want to suggest. The Ministry cannot and will not use expired vaccines on people.”