The Oregon Health Authority recommends the use of nearly 27,000 doses of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine despite reports in Oregon and California about a small number of side effects among people vaccinated from the same group of vaccines.
State officials said Wednesday that they are paying attention to guidance they have received from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which “does not recommend that health departments recommend the administration of this lot or any amount of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine.”
Government officials did not say when they received guidance from the CDC on Moderna’s vaccine batch 041L20A, a group of about one million doses distributed nationwide.
California on Sunday discontinued the vaccinations from this group out of an extreme abundance of caution ‘after less than ten people’ apparently experienced a severe allergic reaction ‘in the same vaccination clinic.
Oregon is investigating two adverse reactions among people who are being vaccinated from the same fate.
According to government officials, Oregon received 57,400 doses of the group at 118 sites. As of Wednesday, 26,567 remained local.
“Adverse reactions to vaccines are extremely rare, but we pay close attention when they occur,” said Dr. Dean Sidelinger, the state health officer and state epidemiologist, said in a statement. “At this time, there is no evidence that these events are related to any other vaccination site, and I encourage every eligible Oregonian to get a vaccine as soon as your vaccination is available.”
Oregon administered 225,066 doses of Moderna or Pfizer coronavirus vaccine as of Tuesday.
Government officials did not immediately respond to questions about the two adverse reactions reported to Oregonians vaccinated with the Moderna lot currently under investigation. Officials also did not immediately say how often side effects of the vaccine are reported.
But a federal database updated last Friday lists 51 events in Oregon linked to the Moderna coronavirus vaccine. These include six reports of headaches, and two reports of difficulty breathing, nausea, abnormal feelings, sore throat, pain or tremor.
According to the federal database, Oregon recorded 246 side effects associated with the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine.
Government officials urged vaccine administrators on Wednesday to release lottery numbers in response to patient questions and reiterated the expectation to monitor patients for 15 to 30 minutes after the coronavirus vaccine was administered.
– Brad Schmidt; [email protected]; 503-294-7628; @_brad_schmidt