‘Revaccinations’ Required Due to Refrigeration Uncertainty in Australian Clinic

The vaccines "may have been too hot or too cold, which can make them not work as well." Patrick T. Fallon/Getty Images

An Australian medical clinic’s inability to find records of whether their vaccines were stored at the right temperature has led to the health department declaring 20 years’ worth of vaccinations may be ineffective.

The vaccines were likely exposed to temperatures that reduce their efficacy, the department said in their probe into Dodges Ferry Medical Clinic in Tasmania.

1,948 people known to have received vaccinations in the last two decades at the facility have been urged to discuss revaccinations with their General Practitioners (GP).

“The Director of Public Health found that between July 2003 and March 22, 2023, there was no written evidence that showed the vaccines were being stored as required by National Guidelines,” the health department advised on Wednesday.

“This means that vaccines may have been too hot or too cold, which can make them not work as well.”

A man receives a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine at a newly opened vaccination hub in Dubbo, Australia, on Aug. 21, 2021. Belinda Soole/Getty Images

‘Out of an Abundance of Caution’

“There is no risk of harm to people who have received these vaccines. However, the vaccine may not be effective at preventing disease,” Director of Public Health Mark Veitch said.

“It is not possible to determine whether vaccines administered at the clinic were effective or ineffective.

“Out of an abundance of caution, we are recommending people who received vaccines at the clinic to seek advice and consider having those vaccine doses repeated.”

The investigation was triggered by an unrelated phone call between the Dodges Ferry Medical Clinic’s staff member and a health department employee. Evidence arose of the storage fridge freezing up, posing a risk to the vaccines near the ice.

There had also been prolonged power outages in the area during bushfires from years earlier.

Affected Vaccines

The health department says that the vaccines that were not stored correctly include those on the National Immunisation Program for children, teenagers, pregnant women, and adults.

Flu and COVID-19 vaccines purchased from pharmacies on private scripts have not been affected.

“We haven’t found any cases of notified serious childhood vaccine-preventable diseases amongst the patients of the clinic,” Veitch added.

For those who go to get revaccinated, there will be no charge for the vaccine, but they may be charged a fee for the consultation with the GP.