Pharmacy Daily | Sharps disposal another COVAX cost

DISPOSING of syringes used as part of the COVID-19 vaccination (COVAX) program is becoming an issue with pharmacists reporting shortages of appropriate bins and the additional costs of having them removed.

The issue was highlighted after Pharmacy Guild of Australia Victorian Branch, Anthony Tassone, posted a photo of several uncollected sharps bins, earlier this months.

A number of pharmacists commented that Tassone's "sharps bin tower" was a familiar sight that needed to be addressed.

Tassone told Pharmacy Daily that the Guild was continuing to advocate to ensure the costs of participating in the vaccine rollout are covered.

"The disposal of sharps from a pharmacy's vaccination program is generally done by fee-for-service third parties at the pharmacy's own cost," he said.

"Some local government councils may have limited syringe disposal services available -- but they do not generally deal with larger quantities that are typical from a vaccination program that a pharmacy undertakes.

"Sharps disposal can become costly as quantities accumulate and is all the more reason why remuneration of community pharmacies through the COVAX program must be sufficient to help cover the true costs of delivery.

"The remuneration for [administering] primary doses of the COVID-19 vaccination remains at $16 per dose, meaning for children aged five to 11 years old receiving their first dose of the paediatric Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, the pharmacy is only being paid $16 per dose despite appointments with children often taking longer and being more complex than for older patients due to anxiety and nervousness from the child.

"The Guild continues to advocate on this issue which the Federal government must address as a matter of importance to maximise the rate of the vaccination roll-out in this patient group."

Meanwhile Guild NSW Committee member, Rick Samimi, told Pharmacy Daily that "bins have been out of stock for weeks causing a disposal issue at pharmacies", but noted that he had received part of an order last week from the COVID-19 Vaccination Ordering System.