Mumbai: Two weeks after thousands of Covid-19 vaccine doses expired, private hospitals in the city continue to store the vaccines in the absence of clarity on disposal procedures, and have been approaching all possible government agencies for guidance.
Additional municipal commissioner Suresh Kakani said BMC is still awaiting guidelines on disposal of vaccine and has asked private hospitals to put its stock in cold storage.
“We have been receiving several calls from hospitals informing us about doses lapsing every week. Lakhs of doses in the city have expired in the past few weeks,” he said.
Senior Food and Drug Administration officials said they will discuss with the state health department and come up with clear steps on how to dispose of doses.
An official said on condition of anonymity, “The hospitals have to follow the same channel through which they procured the doses. It will be the manufacturer who will dispose of the expired vaccines after following biomedical norms of the pollution control board.”
He said if the government gives a directive for hospitals to dispose of the doses, they will have to follow the biomedical waste protocols.
Dr Gautam Bhansali, chief coordinator of private hospitals for vaccination and Covid-19, said it has been more than two weeks but they still haven’t received any guidelines.
“We are in constant talks with the Centre, the BMC and manufacturers to understand the protocols. However, we have not got any clarity, owing to which we have to store the vaccine in cold stores,” he said.
Indian Medical Association (IMA) officials said private hospitals have stood by the government throughout the pandemic and it is now their turn to take care of them.
“Private hospitals lent a helping hand and ensured the government reached its goal of vaccinating major population. With large expiry date of vaccine stock in private sector, the government should step in and bail them out; else, they will have to incur huge financial losses,” said Dr Mangesh Pate, secretary, IMA-Maharashtra.
