Peru urges vaccine sellers to extend expiration dates to cut risk of losses

Peru’s Health Minister Hernando Cevallos asked companies to extend expiration dates past the current three months to reduce the risk of losing COVID-19 vaccine doses, as reported in National Post.

The country has signed vaccine contracts with Sinopharm, Moderna, Pfizer and AstraZeneca.

Cevallos noted that the government had asked one supplier to deliver the vaccines them with expirations of up to six months, but the request was refused as the expiration dates were pre-set.

"The situation that the affected countries are facing must be understood, particularly in Latin America, due to the economic difficulties we're going through," Cevallos said.

The minister argued "not only do you have to consider the date it is produced, but also take into account the date when it arrives in the country. Some of the batches of vaccines have not arrived on time."