Chilean Comptroller finds 3.6 billion peso loss in expired vaccines

Chile's Comptroller General has identified a loss of over 3.6 billion pesos due to expired influenza vaccines that were never distributed during the 2024 vaccination campaign. According to the audit, 762,326 doses purchased from Sinovac Biotech Co. Ltda. and Sanofi Pasteur S.A. expired while held at the logistics operator's facilities.

The investigation revealed that the Undersecretariat of Public Health failed to prove that all possible measures were taken to redistribute the doses or adjust operations before they expired. In total, the 2024 campaign saw a loss of 1,196,648 doses, representing approximately 12.46% of the total available supply.

Beyond the expired stock, the audit highlighted traceability issues regarding 2,906,253 doses that were neither recorded as administered nor expired. Additionally, investigators found 208 vaccination records dated after the recorded death of the individuals listed, suggesting significant data entry errors or administrative irregularities.