Yesterday, Allahpundit delved into the story of the Wisconsin hospital worker who was fired for “spoiling” more than 500 doses of vaccine, removing them from the refrigerator and leaving them on the counter all night. I confess that I was a little confused by that report. I mean, it must have been an accident, right? What kind of person would do this intentionally? But, it appears, further investigation revealed that the unidentified worker confessed to doing this on purpose. Now he has been arrested and faces several charges. (WaPo)
A pharmacist accused of deliberately spoiling more than 500 doses of the coronavirus vaccine at a hospital outside Milwaukee was arrested on Thursday afternoon, local officials said.
Police in Grafton, Wisconsin, arrested the unidentified man on charges of recklessly putting security at first-degree risk, tampering with a prescription drug and criminal property damage. He is being held in the county jail, according to a statement from the police department.
The alleged episode, at Aurora Medical Center in Grafton, Wisconsin, sparked fury across the country, as limited supplies of vaccines are rationed for high-risk individuals. The estimated value of the doses, which the authorities said reached $ 11,000, pales in comparison to the protection they could have offered to health professionals on the front lines of the intensifying pandemic.
This story is even stranger than it seemed at first. According to the police, the man admitted in writing that he had committed the deed, noting that he was fully aware that if the bottles were stored improperly “the vaccine would be ineffective. “My first thought was to ask myself why he confessed when he could have simply said that he had made a mistake. I suppose it is possible that he told someone about his actions and they reported him to the police or a supervisor.
To make matters worse, he didn’t do it just once. He did this twice. He reportedly left the bottles on Christmas Eve, returned to the cold storage area in the morning and did the same thing the following night. On Saturday, thinking that they had only been out for one night and were still fine, the hospital rushed to use the bottles to vaccinate “several dozen people”. But now it turns out that these people may not receive the full measure of immunity expected if they see any benefits. Presumably, these several dozen people will have to return for another round of treatment.
What could have motivated this guy? It just doesn’t sound like some kind of prank that even a very nasty person would do, because there is no real reward for it. He was thinking, ‘ha ha, you thought you were vaccinated, but you are still vulnerable? ‘For a group of strangers? I suppose there are some people out there who are just idiots of evil who cause chaos and evil just because they do it, but even if that is the case here, it is a really bizarre way to cause problems.
Apparently, they are not thinking of accusing the guy of attempted murder, but will try to punish him for danger. There are also some additional charges related to property damage and adulteration of prescription drugs. I suppose it’s fair, and I wouldn’t be surprised if a court decides to throw the book at him just to set an example.
Meanwhile, although this does not appear to be intentional, 42 people in West Virginia accidentally received antibody treatments when they thought they were getting the vaccine. (The hill)
West Virginia officials accidentally gave 42 people a treatment with COVID-19 antibodies instead of the Moderna vaccine.
The West Virginia National Guard said in a statement that it “learned of an error” on Wednesday that resulted in individuals receiving treatment with Regeneron’s COVID-19 antibodies instead of the vaccine.
The state Department of Health is saying it does not believe recipients are in any danger from receiving antibody treatment. All people who received it will be called back and will receive the real vaccine.
The curious part of this confusion is that the antibody treatment is administered intravenously, and not by a quick injection with a syringe. Wouldn’t the people who came looking for the vaccine notice that something was different? Maybe not, I suppose, especially if they don’t work in healthcare. But what about clinic workers? If they knew they were supposed to be giving vaccines and were suddenly told to connect patients to an intravenous tube, wouldn’t they ask a few questions?
I don’t think we can go to the clinic too hard. This is one of the biggest launches of a new vaccine the country has ever seen. There would certainly be some mistakes along the way. Let’s just hope that none of them become a literally fatal mistake.