Iowa tossing out thousands of expired COVID-19 vaccine doses

DES MOINES, Iowa – Iowa has tossed out tens of thousands of expired COVID-19 vaccine doses and could toss out hundreds of thousands more if demand for the vaccine continues to lag in the state.

Iowa Department of Public Health spokeswoman Sarah Ekstrand tells the Des Moines Register that the state has tossed more than 81,000 doses of the vaccine.

The department warned last month that the state might have to discard around 217,000 doses by the end of August unless demand picked up. Officials say they’ve seen some more interest in the shots recently, as the cases have surged over the summer. But demand is still far below what it was in April.

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