A Bay Area hospital had its supply of the COVID-19 vaccine stopped after offering doses to teachers who were not part of the state’s priority group.
The Bom Samaritano Hospital in Santa Clara County will no longer receive the COVID-19 vaccine after county officials learned that the hospital gave teachers in a nearby school district a chance to adopt the vaccination queue, which prioritizes health professionals and people aged 75 and over.
“We heard about this email that basically said there was a special vaccination agreement,” said Santa Clara County Councilor James R. Williams during a press conference Monday.
The hospital had contacted the Los Gatos Union School District in “a wonderful gesture from our Good Sam neighbors,” according to a team email sent by the school superintendent. Paul Johnson who was obtained by the San Jose Spotlight, who first told the story.
Johnson said he received the Good Samaritan email on Wednesday night and notified the team the next day.
In the email, Johnson provided district officials with a link to schedule an appointment, adding that hospital staff had released school staff to apply for the vaccine as health professionals.
“If commitments are not available, they will fill the site daily, if not several times a day,” wrote Johnson. “Please keep checking.”
The school district raised money last year to provide meals for frontline staff at two hospitals, including the Good Samaritan.
The district later clarified in a Facebook post that “Good Samaritan giving back a good deed” was a characterization of the superintendent.
The district, which serves students from kindergarten through eighth grade and has about 250 employees, has been conducting distance learning, although it plans a partial reopening from February 1, pending the review of its security plan. said Johnson.
Williams called the Good Samaritan’s actions “very worrying” for several reasons.
The hospital appeared to be “reaching a specific district” based on the appearance of “meals provided”, and not in all school districts, Williams said.
California authorities are prioritizing vaccination for healthcare professionals, people who live or work in long-term care facilities and individuals aged 65 and over. Because of the vaccine shortage, Santa Clara County increased the age limit, reporting that people over 75 be vaccinated.
Vaccines have been scarce in California since its launch in mid-December, as the state struggles with a holiday-driven increase in coronavirus cases and deaths that overloaded hospitals and filled morgues.
Bom Samaritano Hospital said in a January 12 statement that it was providing vaccines only to qualified health workers in the county. At the time, Williams said, it had not yet reached the priority group of people aged 75 or older.
A week later, the hospital appeared to be “suggesting” that school district officials commit perjury, “registering as if they were health workers,” said Williams.
The hospital said in a statement on Saturday that it had erroneously expanded its vaccination group to Level 1b, which includes educators and daycare workers, to avoid wasting doses of vaccine that had already been defrosted.
Williams, however, said the message sent by the school district outlining the hospital’s plan “does not appear to be related to waste.”
Thawed doses of the Pfizer vaccine can be stored for up to five days in the refrigerator; the Moderna vaccine can be stored for up to 30 days under the same conditions. However, the Food and Drug Administration recommends that, once the seal is punctured, both types are used within six hours.
The county said it would provide the Good Samaritan with sufficient vaccine for people who received the first of the two doses needed to complete the vaccination. But the hospital will no longer receive until it provides “sufficient guarantees” and a concrete plan to follow state and county guidelines, said Marty Fenstersheib, Santa Clara County test and vaccine officer, in a letter addressed to Bom Samaritano Hospital on Friday.
All appointments with teachers were canceled, hospital spokeswoman Sarah Sherwood said on Tuesday.
The Good Samaritan was one of 17 vaccination providers in Santa Clara County. He administered about 77% of the 3,785 doses he has received so far and about 47% of the second doses received. There are 537 appointments scheduled for the next seven days, according to the county vaccine panel.