The government said it has secured 120 million low-dead space (LDS) syringes for smooth Covid-19 vaccinations in the third quarter.
The Covid-19 Vaccination Promotion Task Force said it prepared a stable supply of LDS syringes for the third quarter through a four-party collaboration with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and the Public Procurement Service.
LDS syringes are designed to minimize wasted vaccine doses so that vaccines can be administered to as many people as possible.
The government’s syringe preparation came after the nation suffered a short supply of LDS syringes due to a small number of manufacturers in the first half, aiming to provide LDS syringes more quickly for mass injection in the second half.
Under the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), the task force said it had signed supply contracts with seven manufacturers to roll out 120 million LDS syringes for Covid-19 vaccination in the third quarter.
The 120 million syringes include 80 million doses of vaccines scheduled for the third quarter and spares.
The government plans to distribute the LDS syringes by the end of August.
The government also opened the LDS Syringe Management System on July 5 to identify the usage and the remaining number of syringes at each medical institution in real-time.
Since February, the food and drug safety ministry has expedited the certification review process for LDS syringe makers and provided technology support to raise the quality of LDS syringes.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups supported the production of prototypes, equipment funds, and manpower for quality control for the mass production of LDS syringes at smart factories through a public-private partnership.
The Public Procurement Service formed a special team for Covid-19 vaccine syringes, held briefings about syringe makers, supported companies to register as public procurement firms, and signed emergency purchase contracts to supply LDS syringes for the third quarter.
“LDS syringes are essential for maximizing the use of vaccines and achieving early herd immunity of Korean people. So, we will maintain a stable supply through collaborations between government agencies,” Jeong Eun-kyeong, commissioner of KDCA and leader of the Covid-19 Vaccination Promotion Task Force, said.
If the government needs items other than LDS syringes to prevent infectious diseases in the future, it will benchmark the latest case, she added.