[Reporter's View] Vaccine's Cold Chain& Distribution System

Shinsung Pharm in charge of distribution of the flu vaccine at room temperature is being criticized.

 

Shinsung Pharm itself has acknowledged the fault in the distribution process and is waiting for the disposal of the health authorities.

 

The pharmaceutical distribution industry, which has been mainly dealing with synthetic drugs and OTC drugs, has not been very aware of the cold chain.

 

So, even after putting vaccines that shouldn't be kept at room temperature in a paper box without any preservation devices and leaving them outside for hours, they didn't feel any problem.

 

Will it be resolved if only Shinsung Pharm is punished?

 

This incident is only a lack of awareness of cold chains for biological products.

 

The importance of cold chains has emerged more than ever to distribute COVID-19 vaccine, which must be kept refrigerated and frozen due to COVID-19.

 

In consideration of the health policy and the pharmacy network, the distribution of public masks was ultimately entrusted to the pharmaceutical distribution industry.

 

The situation is different for the COVID-19 vaccine.

 

Unlike a mask that can be carried in a paper box, it is essential to refrigerate or freeze COVID-19 vaccine.

 

In particular, it is known that the mRNA vaccine under development by Moderna or Pfizer should be kept at -20℃ and as low as -70℃.

 

Recombinant protein-based vaccine by Novavax needs to be refrigerated at 2-8℃.

 

If the vaccine to be refrigerated falls below zero, problems such as foreign substances may occur, so it is necessary to separate the reference temperature for each manufacturer.

 

It is considered a more important factor than the hospital network, whether the COVID-19 vaccine can be delivered by strict compliance with the reference temperature throughout the entire transportation process from the factory to the frontline hospital.

 

In particular, if it is produced abroad, it must have the capability to check not only the road but also the air transport process.

 

Can the current drug distribution industry's capabilities affect the level of shipping COVID-19 vaccines?

 

Looking at the seminars and conferences surrounding the recent COVID-19 vaccine, FedEx Korea emphasized the strict cold chain system at BIOplus held last month.

 

FedEx Korea said that it minimizes exposure to room temperature by identifying vehicle entry height restrictions, loading docks, and even forklifts through on-site inspection.

 

In case of land transportation, it is prepared in case of a failure in temperature control with a double safety device, and the real-time temperature is checked through 24-hour monitoring.

 

In the case of air transport, it is identified as a premium cargo so that pharmaceuticals can be managed, and it also prepares for sudden changes in flight.

 

Although the general logistics industry is equipped with cold chains, the pharmaceutical distribution industry is still in its position in the past.

 

The proportion of biologics is increasing rapidly, but changes in the distribution industry are slow.

 

With a few temperature-controlled cars and a few warehouses as before, it cannot outperform the large logistics companies following the international system.

 

In the future, if the drug distribution industry is no longer able to transport biopharmaceuticals due to lack of capacity, the damage may be passed on to the public.

 

It is also the reason why the new distribution philosophy and legalization of the system must be updated due to the vaccine distribution crisis.