Govt to withhold COVID vaccines from centres with inconsistent returns » Capital News

NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 30 – The Ministry of Health on Monday said the vaccine deployment centre will withhold COVID-19 vaccines from health facilities unable to account for doses received from warehouses.

Ministry of Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe warned those intending to divert vaccines from government facilities saying they will face the law.

He said accredited facilities should submit weekly reports on the vaccination including doses received, doses used, dose balances and the number of people vaccinated.

“All vaccines issued to counties and health facilities must be accounted for. Any facility that will not account for doses issued will not be issued with more vaccine doses,” he said.

Kagwe further warned that facilities that fail to file returns risk deregistration.

“Any facility that will be involved in any impropriety will be deregistered with immediate effect,” he said.

The CS further reiterated that the administration of the COVID-19 vaccine is free.

The ministry at the same time prohibited the issuance of COVID-19 vaccines outside listing facilities and within stipulated guidelines, warning that misadministration can be fatal.

CS Kagwe said that vaccines should only be issued at the health facilities listed by the ministry as well as registered health care providers.

Kagwe noted the ministry had established administration of vaccines in areas other than designated centres, a situation he termed unacceptable.

The ministry reported that a total of 2,752,266 Kenyans had received a COVID-19 jab as at August 29, including 1,949,340 first doses and 802,926 second doses.

The proportion of fully vaccinated adults stood at 2.95 per cent.