A record 100,000 practices would have ordered 8.57 million doses of vaccine for the coming week.
(Photo: imago images / Agencia EFE)
Berlin The huge increase in demand for first and booster vaccinations in general practitioners’ practices can apparently no longer be met. The National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV) informed the resident doctors in a letter from practice on Friday night.
For the coming week a record number of 100,000 practices would have ordered 8.57 million vaccine doses, of which 4.65 million doses from Biontech and Pfizer and around four million from the manufacturer Moderna.
However, around half of Biontech orders could not be delivered, the letter said. The Federal Ministry of Health announced last week that the manufacturer’s vaccines would have to be quota. A total of around two million cans are missing for the coming week.
However, unlike the Federal Ministry of Health, there are evidently delivery problems with Moderna. “Here, too, there are regional cuts,” says the letter. Apparently there are problems logistically meeting the entire demand. The four million cans of Moderna correspond to 15 times the order quantity compared to last week.
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Last week, however, Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) declared that there was no maximum limit for the manufacturer’s vaccine. By the end of the year there will be enough vaccine for everyone with a total of around 24 million doses from Biontech and 26 million from Moderna.
Criticism because of Biontech limitation
“The practices sometimes put in extra shifts in order to vaccinate as many people as possible before Christmas. And now there is again a lack of vaccine ”, criticized KBV deputy chief Stephan Hofmeister.
Spahn wants to throttle Biontech delivery: practices have to reschedule
KVB boss Andreas Gassen added: “This is once again confronting the residents with massive problems, with which their enormously high level of commitment is slowed down without need.” In Germany, almost 800,000 people were vaccinated on Wednesday, the same as the last time in July. A large part of it was booster vaccinations.
There had already been sharp criticism when the Biontech vaccine was allocated. It is feared that people who have already agreed on booster vaccinations with Biontech might hesitate if they are offered Moderna, and that in the practices, a lot of inquiries and rebookings will result in significant extra work. Moderna is also only recommended for people over 30 and not for pregnant women.
More: Baden-Württemberg’s Minister of Health – “Expect a vaccination jolt in society”