A Detroit area hospital system canceled nearly two thousand appointments for second doses of the Covid-19 vaccine after an "unexpected and significant" supply shortage.
Beaumont Health said they were notified about a reduction in Pfizer vaccine allocation from the state of Michigan on Friday, forcing them to nix 1,884 second dose appointments scheduled for Thursday, the health system said in a statement on Monday.
Carolyn Wilson, Beaumont Health COO, said in the statement the group was "disappointed" by the setback.
"Our teams worked around the clock and throughout the weekend with the state to try and secure the second dose vaccine we requested," Wilson said.
The health system, which includes eight hospitals, said it is planning to reschedule the appointments to one week later if it receives enough supplies from the state. Beaumont Health said it has the capacity to administer 50,000 doses a week, but this week they were only provided around 2,000.
"The state has been working with Beaumont Health for the past week to reconcile their second dose shortages. It is unfortunate that they chose to cancel second dose appointments while we were continuing to work with them on this issue," Lynn Sutfin, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson, told NBC News.
Still, Michigan's largest health care provider said it's "seeking more clarity from the state on these much needed second doses" and cannot book any more first doses of the Pfizer vaccine at the Beaumont Service Center until they receive more supplies.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the second dose of the Pfizer and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines may be administered up to 6 weeks after the first dose.
The health system said it has provided more than 100,000 shots since the vaccine became available two months ago. According to NBC News' count, Michigan has administered some one million doses, with 4.9 percent of the population fully vaccinated in the state.
"We remain committed to vaccinating patients as quickly as possible as soon as we receive our allocated doses of vaccine," Wilson said.
