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Hospitals running vaccination clinics find a good surprise in boxes of COVID-19 vaccine

Vials that are supposed to hold 5 doses are routinely found to have 6 or 7.

INDIANAPOLIS — There is yet another surprise in nation's fight against COVID-19. There are more doses of vaccine being shipped than anyone knew about.

Vials that are supposed to hold five doses are routinely found to have six or seven. The FDA says it's OK to use them. That could add up to millions of additional vaccinations.

From just one small shipment, Franciscan Health figures it can vaccinate about 125 more people than it had planned. Their clinic opens Friday.

Credit: Franciscan Health
Franciscan Health receiving a shipment of COVID-19 vaccine.

IU Health, the state's largest health care network, will open about a half-dozen clinics Friday. The first opened Wednesday. According to a spokesperson, it ran "exceedingly well" and none of the roughly 200 people vaccinated suffered any adverse side effects.

IU Health expects another 8 thousand doses to be delivered on Monday. Finding just one more dose in each vial could add up to 16 hundred additional vaccinations.

Credit: IU Health
A COVID-19 vaccination card is filled out at IU Health.

Nearly 2,000 doses arrived at Community Health Thursday. Two thousand front line health care workers have already signed up for the vaccinations. They start Friday.

RELATED: Reports: Extra coronavirus vaccine doses found in Pfizer vials

Ascension will have clinics running in five of its hospitals. The St. Vincent Hospital plans to vaccinate almost 800 people in just one day.

Smaller hospitals will be just as busy.

Hancock Health in Greenfield just received its vaccine. Its staff intends to vaccinate four people every ten minutes.

Credit: Hancock Health
Hancock Health showing a shipment of COVID-19 vaccine it received.

Health officials believe the sooner people are vaccinated, the sooner the pandemic will be over and more lives will be saved.

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