Power failure at Kaiser Permanente’s Lakewood facility ruins 165 doses

Staff at Kaiser Permanente Lakewood’s medical offices threw away 165 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine on Thursday after they went into ruin following a power outage at the facility.

The power outage, which Kaiser said was brief and caused by high winds, shut down a refrigerator storing doses of Moderna vaccine, causing the vaccines to exceed the required storage temperature.

Staff at the facility worked throughout the day to administer as many doses of the vaccine as possible and were able to vaccinate 135 people before the vaccine expired, Kaiser said in a statement.

“Power to the facility and the refrigerator has since been restored and the refrigerator at this location used to store Moderna COVID-19 vaccines is functioning properly again,” the statement said. “No other Kaiser Permanente facility has been affected.”

The incident reflects the fragility of COVID-19 vaccines. For example, doses of Pfizer should be stored at ultra-cold temperatures. Both injections should be administered promptly. The state also told providers, such as local public health agencies and hospitals, that they must administer the injections within 72 hours of receiving them.

Colorado receives about 70,000 doses of the vaccine per week.