In the latest pitfall of the introduction of the COVID-19 vaccine in California, the state’s top epidemiologist on Sunday night recommended that clinics discontinue hundreds of thousands of doses after a series of allergic reactions in Southern California.
An abnormally high number of people experienced anaphylactic shock, a serious allergic reaction that requires immediate medical attention, after receiving an injection of the Moderna vaccine at a vaccination site in San Diego, Dr. Erica Pan said in a statement Sunday night. Although the number was less than 10, the cluster of adverse reactions prompted the California Department of Public Health to suspend administration of about 330,000 doses from the state-distributed batch until an investigation was completed.
“Our goal is to provide the COVID vaccine safely, quickly and fairly,” Pan said in the statement. “A higher than normal rate of possible allergic reactions was reported with a specific lot of the Moderna vaccine administered at one local vaccination clinic. … Out of extreme caution and also because we recognize the extremely limited supply of vaccines, we are recommending providers to use other available vaccine inventory and to discontinue Moderna Lot 041L20A vaccine administration until the CDC, FDA, Moderna and the state is complete. We will provide an update when we find out more. “
The responses reported at the San Diego clinic were similar to the rare cases the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had warned and warned to watch out for. In California, vaccination centers monitor recipients on-site for side effects for 15 minutes. The Southern California cluster was the first in the nation to provide enough care to disrupt use altogether.
The 330,000 doses in the Moderna batch amount to just under 10% of all vaccine doses assigned to California to date. But of the 3.5 million doses the state has received, it had administered less than a third, just over 1 million, according to CDC data. Per capita, only five states have vaccinated fewer residents than California, according to CDC data.
Serious allergic reactions, while possible, are believed to be extremely rare with Moderna and Pfizer vaccines. The rate of anaphylaxis in the Moderna vaccine is expected to be about one in 100,000, officials said. Multiple federal and state agencies had opened an investigation into the cases and said they would have more information later this week.