Report: Pfizer rejects extension of Israel's expiring vaccines
Country reportedly has stockpile of unused Moderna vaccines it can use if extension not given
Pfizer has rejected Israel's request to extend the expiration date on over 1 million of its vaccines that are due to expire on July 30, Channel 12 reported Thursday night.
The biotech company reportedly told Israel that it does not currently have enough information to ensure that the doses would still be safe beyond the current expiration date.
Without the go-ahead from Pfizer, Israel may be unable to offer the first COVID-19 shot to Israelis after July 9 as there will be no vaccines for the second dose three weeks later.
Israel is said to have around 1.4 million doses set to expire at the end of the month.
The Israeli government has been encouraging Israelis to get vaccinated before the July 9 deadline with a focus on inoculating adolescents.
Channel 13 reported Thursday that Israel has a stockpile of unused Moderna vaccines that it can use if the Pfizer vaccine extension is not given.
Pfizer and Moderna are both “messenger” RNA, or mRNA, vaccines, marking the first mRNA vaccines available to the public.
Spain and Germany have been mixing Moderna and Pfizer vaccines for the second jab with younger people who have already taken a first AstraZeneca shot due to blood clot concerns and a new study from Oxford University finds that mixing the AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines generates a strong immune response.
The Israeli Ministry of Health said Friday morning that 295 cases of coronavirus have been identified in the past 24 hours.
The percentage of positive tests decreased slightly from the previous day and stands at 0.5 percent.