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It is estimated that 4,300 people received less of the Pfizer vaccine than they should have, KTVU reported on 4 March.
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Too little of the vaccine was administered due to a problem with syringes on March 1 said the media.
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But California health officials said people had received an adequate dose, and that they did not need shots.
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Thousands of people who visited a mass vaccination site in Oakland, California on March 1 received the wrong dose of Pfizer vaccine, KTVU reported.
It is estimated that 4,300 people were given less than the recommended dose while getting a chance at the Oakland Coliseum, two unknown medical workers told the media.
The optimal dose of the vaccine is 0.3 ml Pfizer, but thousands of people receive about 0.2 ml, KTVU said.
Due to a problem with the syringes, too little of the COVID-19 vaccine was administered, reports the media.
The confusion occurred that morning, but was identified and resolved at 2 p.m., government officials confirmed to KTVU.
Both agencies that run the Mass Vaccination Center – the California Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency – were unaware of the matter until KTVU notified them on March 2nd.
Cal OES, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, State Department of Public Health, United States Health and Human Services (HHS), and Pfizer held emergency meetings on March 2 to discuss the error, an OES spokesman in California told the media said.
Cal OES did not deny that a smaller dose was given. Instead, a spokesperson told KTVU that the amount not given to people was ‘negligible’. That’s why no one was called back for an extra booster shot, he said.
Cal OES said Pfizer told the agency there was no reason to worry unless someone received less than half a single shot – in which case they should get another chance immediately.
The public should ‘rest assured that vaccines administered in the Colosseum will be dispensed in a manner consistent with medical and scientific best practices and will work as designed,’ officials said according to KRON4.
Dr. John Swartzberg, emeritus of clinical professor of public health at UC Berkeley, told KTVU that people should “go well” as long as they get their second dose of vaccine.
The California Department of Health did not confirm or deny the allegations provided to KTVU earlier this week, KTVU reported Sunday.
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