A Kroger spokeswoman said in a statement that “a small number of patients” received the empty injections at their location at The Little Clinic in Midlothian, which is near Richmond.
“All affected customers were contacted and received their COVID-19 vaccine,” said Allison McGee, corporate affairs manager at Kroger mid-Atlantic in a statement. “We thank these customers for their understanding and apologize for the inconvenience.”
The Virginia Department of Public Health told CNN that Kroger informed them that nine patients received the empty injections on Monday because the provider did not notice that the syringes were not filled.
“Kroger is taking steps to ensure that similar incidents do not occur in the future,” an agency spokeswoman said in a statement.
“My initial reaction was shock and surprise, and a little anxiety,” she told WWBT.
Hawes managed to get the real vaccine at the clinic about two hours after receiving the call.
“They were very clear with me when we entered,” she told WWBT. “They showed us the vial to make sure it was Johnson & Johnson, they removed the vaccine and she showed it to me again.”
Kroger said the error was “corrected immediately with the TLC team” and all vaccinators were retrained and reminded of current vaccination policies.
The supermarket chain said it had administered nearly a million vaccines at its pharmacies and clinics in the United States.
On Thursday, the company said it was expanding its efforts to deliver one million doses a week.