The district attributes the incident to human error after a vaccine refrigerator on a mobile unit was accidentally turned off, reported the CNN affiliate WPBF. Health district CEO Darcy Davis said the compromised vaccine was destroyed, according to the WPBF.
In a statement, Florida surgeon general Dr. Scott Rivkees said it was “a tragedy that even a dose of this critical resource was wasted and not used to save Covid-19’s life”
Rivkees said he hopes to see the situation addressed and corrected immediately to ensure that Palm Beach County does not allow any more doses to be missed.
In the United States, nearly 34 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine have been administered, with more than 27 million people receiving at least one dose – or just over 8% of the population. About 6.4 million people received both doses, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States.
About 70% to 85% of the US population must be fully vaccinated before the country can begin to return to a sense of normalcy, Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN late on Tuesday.
As part of the Palm Beach County audit, the health department is asking the district to keep a complete record of all existing vaccine-related equipment and procedures.
The Florida Department of Health has requested that the audit be completed by February 12 – and that all findings and corrective actions be reported to the state immediately upon completion, according to a press release on Wednesday.