Photo/Illutration Freezers for storing novel coronavirus vaccines made by EBAC Co. (Yasuaki Oshika)

Municipal officials are warming up to giving a new lease on life to special freezers for COVID-19 vaccines as the fully publicly funded inoculation program nears the end.

Some freezers are expected to be deployed to hold school lunch ingredients, store refrigerants used inside firefighters’ uniforms and even keep pets’ remains until cremation, according to the health ministry.

The ministry purchased 22,000 freezers for about 9 billion yen ($61 million) and distributed 15,000 units to municipalities, which have been responsible for vaccinations.

But many freezers have largely gone unused since the novel coronavirus pandemic passed its peak.

The remaining 7,000 freezers the central government owns were rented to companies that provided vaccinations for employees, among other organizations.

In December, the health ministry said municipal governments can “transfer, sell or dispose of” the freezers even before the inoculation program ends in March.

The ministry suggested freezers can be handed over to hospitals, universities and research institutes.

In response, officials in Toba, Mie Prefecture, said the Toba Fisheries Science Center, a municipal research institute, will utilize a freezer for marine algae research.

Officials in Nagahama, Shiga Prefecture, have begun making inquiries among local hospitals, while officials in Sakurai, Nara Prefecture, plan to ask city departments whether they need a freezer.

“We will leave it up to the judgment of local governments, but we hope they will make effective use of freezers as much as possible,” said Katsuro Matsuoka, a health ministry official in charge of vaccination programs.

He said the ministry will also find effective ways to utilize the government-owned units.

Five manufacturers supplied 9,900 freezers that can store Pfizer Inc. vaccines at minus 75 degrees and 12,000 freezers that can keep Moderna Inc. vaccines at minus 20 degrees.

But they have only been used for the past two to three years.

A representative of PHC Holdings Corp., one of the manufacturers, said the service life of its products is eight years, but they are often used for more than 10 years.

Ken Sato, president of EBAC Co., another supplier, said disposal costs require 50,000 yen to 100,000 yen per unit, including charges for treating the refrigerant.

In a notice issued in December, the health ministry said municipal governments can also transfer cold storage bags, which were used for transporting vaccines to immunization sites, to organizations such as hospitals and welfare facilities.

It also said municipalities can continue to possess portable freezers manufactured by Twinbird Corp. because they can be deployed in times of disaster.

Related News