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Incheon International Airport officials transport Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine doses that arrived in South Korea on Saturday at Incheon International Airport. (Yonhap News)

Moderna has said it can deliver only half of the 8.5 million vaccine doses it pledged this month in a contract with the Korean government. This latest delay means the gap between the two vaccine shots will be extended to six weeks instead of the original three to four.

Minister of Health and Welfare Kwon Deok-cheol and Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) Director Jeong Eun-kyeong on Monday told a joint briefing in the afternoon that due to a problem in the vaccine production lab, Moderna informed Korea that only half of the original 8.5 million vaccine doses will be delivered this month. The company also told the world of this issue and apologized for the delay, with Moderna promising to do its best to deliver the agreed volume to Korea.

The government said it immediately protested the delay to Moderna, with Second Vice Minister of Health and Welfare Kang Do-tae to lead an official delegation to the US to urge faster shipment of the vaccines.

The delay means the first vaccine shots will proceed as planned, but the timing of the second will be delayed. The interval between the two shots of mRNA vaccines like Pfizer and Moderna is now six weeks instead of the original three to four, a measure that will apply to people scheduled to get their second shots from Monday.

In addition, no delays in vaccination are seen for school faculty, third-year students in high school and those studying for the College Scholastic Ability Test, with the schedule for the exam to remain unchanged. The interval in shots will be shortened to five weeks for education and childcare staff such as teachers at preschools, kindergartens, and elementary and middle schools in consideration of the opening of the upcoming fall semester. Everyone will receive individual notification of the new schedule this week.

The KDCA's vaccination committee on July 22 decided on the intervals, saying, "The vaccination interval can be in the range of up to six weeks — three weeks for Pfizer and four for Moderna — depending on the inoculation conditions of the medical institution and personal situation of the vaccinated person." The interval for the Pfizer vaccine on July 26 was extended from three to four weeks.

Abroad, Germany's interval is three to six weeks for Pfizer and four to six for Moderna, the UK eight for either vaccine and Canada up to 16 for either.

For the first vaccine shot, Korea will proceed with vaccination for those in their 50s without delay through Aug. 28. In the third week of this month, the Pfizer vaccine will be offered in the greater Seoul area and the Moderna vaccine in the rest of the country.

However, 189 facilities are designated to give the Moderna vaccine in the greater Seoul area, while 278 in the rest of the country are authorized to give the Pfizer one. Vaccination centers, on the other hand, offer the Pfizer vaccine regardless of the region. In the third week of this month, text messages will be sent to those slated to get vaccinated on what vaccines are available for them.

Because of the latest delay in getting the Moderna vaccine, South Korea's original goal of achieving herd immunity by late October is expected to be delayed two weeks. President Moon Jae-in on Aug. 2 had announced that herd immunity of 70 percent of the population getting at least one vaccine shot would come in time for this year's Chuseok holidays. This would have meant that 70 percent of the population would have gotten their second vaccine shots by mid-October, but the Moderna delay means the likely date is late that month.

By Kim Ji-hoon, staff reporter

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]