State Requests Audit After Vaccine Doses Spoiled

Health News Florida

Published February 3, 2021 at 2:26 PM EST

Doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are seen at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Md., Dec. 14, 2020. (DoD photo by Lisa Ferdinando)

The Florida Department of Health on Wednesday requested an audit after more than 1,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses were spoiled in Palm Beach County.

The department called on the Health Care District of Palm Beach County to conduct the audit by Feb. 12.

The request came after about 1,160 doses spoiled this month after a refrigerator was unintentionally turned off, according to news reports last week.

"It is a tragedy that even one dose of this critical resource would go to waste and not be used to save a life from COVID-19,” state Surgeon General Scott Rivkees said Wednesday in a prepared statement.

“In Florida, we have been diligent to preserve and utilize every single dose of the vaccine. While we must rely on partners to distribute this critical resource, we expect that every provider treat the vaccine as the precious commodity that it is. We hope to see this situation rectified and addressed immediately to ensure the Palm Beach County Health Care District does not let one more dose go to waste.”