STAT+: Pharmalittle: Hospitals grapple with extra dose of Pfizer vaccine; FDA panel meets to review Moderna vaccine
Good morning, everyone, and how are you today? We are doing just fine, thank you, despite a heavy blanket of snow that has descended on the Pharmalot campus. After all, what’s a little precipitation? The official mascot, in fact, is thrilled and is bounding about the campus grounds, which leaves us to get on with the tasks ahead. Speaking of which, you have your choice today of interesting events to watch: a congressional hearing where some members of the Sackler family will appear to discuss the role of Purdue Pharma in the opioid crisis, and an FDA panel to review another Covid-19 vaccine. Enjoy. Meanwhile, here are some tidbits. Hope your day goes well, and do stay in touch. …
With the Covid-19 vaccine in short supply, hospital pharmacists found themselves in the unexpected position of throwing away one in every six doses of the first vaccines distributed this week in the U.S., STAT writes. The confusion came over labeling: The vaccine comes in vials labeled as containing enough for five doses. But pharmacists discovered that, after thawing and mixing the contents with a dilutent, each vial contained enough vaccine for six doses. Without explicit approval from the manufacturer, that final dose had to be discarded.
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