Moderna vaccine, which was issued FDA emergency use authorization (EUA) for the prevention of coronavirus disease. Florida, USA. (Photo by: Jose More/VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
April 1, 2021- 11:15 p.m
Federal officials are bumping up the number of COVID-19 vaccines allowed in vials of the Moderna shot, in a move that is expected to give a boost to shipments of the drug.
Moderna is now allowed to put 13 to 15 doses in a vial, up from 10, the FDA said in an announcement Thursday.
The agency also allowed for 11 doses to be extracted from current vials of 10.
“Both of these revisions positively impact the supply of Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine, which will help provide more vaccine doses to communities and allow shots to get into arms more quickly,” Peter Marks, M.D., Ph.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research said.
The FDA added that squeezing extra doses out of the vials is dependent on using the right types of syringes and needles.
