Although there is no likely shortage of vaccines – regarding the orders placed by the European Union – the World Health Organization has warned a shortage of syringes could occur in the coming months. As a matter of fact, the production pace struggles following the production pace of Covid-19 vaccines and it is a major logistics issue.
WHO advisor Lisa Hedman said “a deficit in 2022 of over a billion could happen”. The shortage could hit African countries, as well as the European market. 7.25 billion doses of vaccines have been given worldwide, which is twice as many of the usually yearly vaccinations. Therefore, the need in syringes has dramatically increased. To inject the Pfizer vaccine, 0.3 milliliter syringes are used, and the market is very harsh for this very specific equipment.
According to WHO’s Senior Advisor, lacking syringes could have an impact on public health “in the coming years”, as it could delay usual vaccinations, and many young people could pay the price. Even more dangerous, syringes could be eventually re-used, as they are normally disposable after a single use, for obvious hygiene reasons.
Covid: concern after a first case of the new Omicron variant has been found in Europe
The new Omicron variant found in South Africa has started to spread already, especially in Europe where a first case has been reported in Belgium this Friday. Keep reading to find out more. [Read more]
Covid: concern after a first case of the new Omicron variant has been found in Europe
