An elderly man passed out and died in New York City on Sunday morning, shortly after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, officials said on Monday.
The man, who was in his 70s, fell when he left the Jacob Javits Convention Center in Manhattan, just 25 minutes after receiving his injection, New York State Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker said in a statement. communicated.
Local security and first aid rushed to his side in seconds, but the man, who has not yet been identified, was pronounced dead at a local hospital shortly after.
It is not yet clear whether the man’s death is linked to the vaccine, with an investigation underway.
Adverse reactions to the vaccine are considered extremely rare, with the few cases most commonly associated with an allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis.
“The initial indications are that the man had no allergic reaction to the vaccine,” said Zucker in his statement.
The man, who was in his 70s, fell when leaving the Jacob Javits Convention Center in Manhattan (above), just 25 minutes after being shot.
Adverse reactions to the vaccine are considered extremely rare, with the few cases most commonly associated with an allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis (file photo)
The man’s sudden collapse followed a mandatory 15-minute observation period, in which he “exhibited no adverse reactions or any distress,” said Zucker.
The FDNY said the patient was taken to the hospital by Senior Care shortly before 11 am on Sunday, where he died shortly after his arrival.
The man’s identity has not yet been revealed by the authorities. It is also unclear what type of COVID-19 vaccine he received.
Javits Center and Zucker’s office have not yet returned a request from DailyMail.com for comment.
In his statement, Zucker emphasized that he and other public health experts believe the vaccine “is safe and, along with continued surveillance, including wearing a mask and social detachment, will end this pandemic.”
“I encourage all qualified New Yorkers to get vaccinated,” continued Zucker.
The Javits Center opened as a mass vaccination site in January and is one of several in the New York City area. It was originally used as a field hospital after the coronavirus pandemic started last spring.
Nearly a million people in New York City have already been vaccinated, with 1.5 million residents having received their first doses across the state.
In the United States, the daily number of people vaccinated now exceeds the number of infected, with the country having an average of 1.3 million vaccines per day.
Almost 42 million doses have already been administered in total.
At least one dose of the vaccine has been administered to 31,579,100 million people, which is equivalent to 9.6 percent of the population.
Just over 9,147,000 Americans have already received both doses of the vaccine, representing 2.78% of the population.
The Javits Center opened as a mass vaccination site in January and is one of several in the New York City area
Adverse reactions to the vaccine are considered extremely rare, with the few cases most commonly associated with allergic reactions.
Since the vaccine’s launch began in December, however, there have been a handful of hitherto unexplained deaths involving those who recently received a COVID injection.
Over the weekend, Virginia Minister Drene Keyes, 58, died less than a day after receiving a dose of Pfizer vaccine at a clinic in Warsaw on Friday and fell ill.
Authorities said they did not know the cause of her death, any underlying conditions that Keyes might have that could have contributed to it, and said there was no evidence to suggest that her death was related to vaccination.
“Initial indications are that the man had no allergic reaction to the vaccine,” Zucker, however, said in his statement.
Similar to Sunday’s incident in New York City, Keyes stayed at the clinic for 15 minutes after the injection, as recommended, before returning to the clinic the same day.
She was rushed to VCU Health Tappahannock Hospital, where she died on Saturday.
“Preliminary findings indicate that the cause of death was not anaphylaxis, but it will take several weeks for additional information to be available,” said Warsaw Police Chief Joan Kent.
“We can confirm that the death occurred a few hours after we received the vaccine, but that is not evidence that it is related. We are currently investigating and do not yet know the cause of death. ‘
Kent continued: ‘Our thoughts are with the family during this heartbreaking period,’ the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement. “The CDC continues to closely monitor the safety of all vaccines and we are actively working with Virginia officials to fully investigate the situation.”
Over the weekend, Virginia Minister Drene Keyes (right), 58, died less than a day after receiving a dose of Pfizer vaccine at a clinic in Warsaw on Friday and fell ill
Similarly, in California last month, Tim Zook, a 60-year-old X-ray technician at the South Coast Global Medical Center in Santa Ana, died on January 7, two days after receiving his second dose of injection from Pfizer.
He wrote on Facebook on the day of his vaccination that he ‘had never been so excited to have an injection before’ and that he celebrated for being ‘fully vaccinated’.
However, within hours, the father of three reportedly suffered an apparent adverse reaction, telling co-workers that he had severe stomach pains and was having trouble breathing.
After his symptoms worsened, his co-workers took him to the emergency room, where he was placed on a ventilator four hours after his arrival.
The Orange County coroner said the cause of Zook’s death is currently inconclusive and that further toxicology tests will take months to complete. If there is a correlation with the vaccine, the office said it will notify the OC Health Agency.
In a statement to DailyMail.com at the time, a Pfizer spokesman said the company is aware of Zook’s death and is also investigating the matter.
Pfizer said: ‘Our immediate thoughts are with the bereaved family. We closely monitor all of these events and collect relevant information to share with global regulatory authorities.
Based on ongoing safety analyzes conducted by Pfizer, BioNTech and health officials, BNT162b2 maintains a positive risk-benefit profile for the prevention of COVID-19 infections. Serious adverse events, including deaths unrelated to the vaccine, are unfortunately likely to occur at a rate similar to that which would occur in the general population. ‘
Tim Zook (above with wife Rochelle), a 60-year-old X-ray technician at the South Coast Global Medical Center in Santa Ana died just two days after receiving his second dose of vaccine from Pfizer
Moments after receiving the vaccine, Zook wrote on Facebook: ‘I’ve never been excited to have an injection before. I am now fully vaccinated after receiving my second dose of Pfizer ‘
Zook’s wife, Rochelle Zook, told the Register that her family was not “blaming any pharmaceutical companies.”
“My husband loved what he did,” she said. “He worked in hospitals for 36 and a half years. He believed in vaccines. I’m sure he would get the vaccine again and would like the public to get it.
“But when someone shows symptoms 2 and a half hours after the vaccine, that is a reaction. What else could have happened? We would like the public to know what happened to Tim, so that he didn’t die in vain. Serious reactions are rare. In reality, COVID is a far more deadly force than the reactions of the potential vaccine itself.
‘The message is, stay safe, get the vaccine – but employees need to do more research. We need to know the cause. Vaccines need to be as safe as possible. Every life is important. ‘
For the first time in three months on Sunday, the United States reported less than 100,000 new cases of COVID-19 daily, with hospitalizations also falling as the vaccine’s release gains momentum.
Just over 96,000 new cases and 1,474 deaths were reported across the country on Sunday, according to a count from the COVID Tracking Project.
These more recent figures have raised US totals to more than 26.99 million cases and 463,339 deaths to date.
Hospitalizations also fell with 81,439 patients admitted on Sunday – the fourth consecutive day with less than 90,000 after two months above that limit.
