On Friday, Moderna Inc announced that it was recalling 764,900 doses of its COVID-19 vaccine made by its contract manufacturer Rovi, Reuters reported. Moderna announced the recall after a vial was found contaminated by a foreign body. According to the pharmaceutical giant, no safety issues have been identified and the measures are being undertaken as a safety precaution.
Moderna has stated that the affected doses were distributed in Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden in January. According to the company, the issue was found in just one vial, though it has not been specified exactly what was causing the contamination. The measures are being enacted as “an abundance of caution”, the drugmaker said.
Moderna added that it did not believe the contamination posed a risk to other vials in the batch in a statement this past Friday.
Last year, Japanese authorities pulled multiple batches of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine after the detection of contaminated vials. Doses were found to have been contaminated with stainless steel contaminants, prompting the recall. “The company is investigating the reports and remains committed to working transparently and expeditiously with its partner, Takeda, and regulators to address any potential concerns,” a Moderna spokesperson said last August.
To date, Moderna has administered over 900,000,000 doses of its mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, according to company figures. CEO Stephane Bancel recently stated his opinion that COVID vaccines will need to be rolled out on a seasonal basis, similarly to a flu shot.
