Pfizer says COVID-19 vaccine can be 'stored in normal freezers'

Pfizer on Friday announced that its COVID-19 vaccine can be stored at regular temperatures in normal freezers. In new research, the pharmaceutical firm found that the vaccines were stable even when it was maintained at standard freezer temperatures - between -25 degrees and -15 degrees celsius, for approximately 2 weeks. As of now, the Pfizer vial can be kept at normal refrigeration temperatures for up to 5 days. When stored in the ultra-cold freezer, the vaccines can last up to six months, according to the firm’s release. Furthermore, it was found that Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine may be more effective after just one shot than it was previously anticipated. Its first-dose efficacy report was published in the Lancet, and it was found that a delay in the second dose due to limited supplies might not impact the first dose shot’s protection from the coronavirus disease. 

Pfizer can be transported at -25°C to-15°C (-13°F to 5°F), vaccine’s COVID-19 stability data submitted to the US FDA stated. The new research indicated that the vaccine can be stored at temperatures more commonly found in pharmaceutical freezers and refrigerators. Therefore, Pfizer can be kept in a normal pharmacy that can allow for vaccine vials to be stored at these temperatures for a total of two weeks as an alternative or complement to storage in an ultra-low temperature freezer. The analysis was made after a study of samples from the past nine months of COVID-19 vaccine from the batches that supplied the earliest clinical trials, through the commercial-scale batches currently in production. 

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“We have been continuously performing stability studies to support the production of the vaccine at commercial scale, with the goal of making the vaccine as accessible as possible for healthcare providers and people across the U.S. and around the world,” said Albert Bourla, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Pfizer.

Expiration date could be extended

“We appreciate our ongoing collaboration with the FDA and CDC as we work to ensure our vaccine can be shipped and stored under increasingly flexible conditions. If approved, this new storage option would offer pharmacies and vaccination centers greater flexibility in how they manage their vaccine supply," the Pfizer boss said. Currently, the labels for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine, including the EUA label in the US states that the vaccine must be stored in an ultra-cold freezer. The vials have to be shipped in a thermal container that can be used as temporary storage for a total of up to 30 days. Storage has to be refilled with dry ice every five days. As the firm established the additional stability data, Pfizer and BioNTech now anticipate that its shelf life and the expiration date could be extended. 

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(Image Credit: AP)