West Virginia mistakenly offers 42 individuals Regeneron IV Covid remedy as an alternative of vaccine shot

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West Virginia mistakenly offers 42 individuals Regeneron IV Covid remedy as an alternative of vaccine shot

A pharmacist dilutes the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine whereas making ready it to manage to employees and residents on the Goodwin Home Bailey's Crossroa


A pharmacist dilutes the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine whereas making ready it to manage to employees and residents on the Goodwin Home Bailey’s Crossroads, a senior residing group in Falls Church, Virginia, on December 30, 2020.

Brendan Smialowski | AFP | Getty Pictures

Dozens of individuals in West Virginia had been mistakenly given Regeneron’s Covid-19 antibody remedy as an alternative of the Moderna vaccine, the West Virginia Nationwide Guard introduced Thursday.

The state’s Nationwide Guard stated 42 individuals acquired the remedy, which is given intravenously, at a vaccination clinic staffed by the Boone County Well being Division. The Nationwide Guard stated it discovered of the error on Wednesday.

Everybody who acquired the antibody remedy as an alternative of the vaccine, which is given by way of a shot within the arm, have been contacted, Julie Miller, an administrator for the Boone County Well being Division, instructed CNBC by e-mail. She added that “we don’t consider there may be any threat of hurt.”

Regeneron’s monoclonal antibody remedy, which must be administered via an IV drip, is seen as a promising remedy for Covid-19 — particularly when administered early on in the midst of an infection. However the mix-up in West Virginia is only one instance of confusion within the rush to distributed the vaccine to tens of tens of millions of individuals. The rollout has been slower than anticipated and marked by logistical challenges.

“It has been decided that this was an remoted incident,” Miller stated. “The entire affected people will likely be supplied the COVID-19 vaccine as we speak.”

She stated the well being division will work carefully with the state Nationwide Guard and the Division of Well being and Human Assets to evaluate its insurance policies and procedures.

Miller didn’t present any particulars on what brought on the mix-up.

Representatives for the West Virginia Nationwide Guard and the West Virginia governor’s workplace didn’t return CNBC’s request for additional touch upon how the error occurred.

Maj. Gen. James Hoyer, adjutant normal of the West Virginia Nationwide Guard, stated in a press release that his troops “acted instantly” to right the error as quickly as they came upon what occurred. “We instantly reviewed and strengthened our protocols to reinforce our distribution course of to forestall this from occurring once more,” he stated in a press release.

He added that the state will proceed to ramp up distribution of the vaccine “to save lots of increasingly more lives each single day.”

Dr. Clay Marsh, the state’s Covid-19 Czar, famous in a press release that the Regeneron remedy mistakenly administered as an alternative of the vaccine is identical product “that was administered to President Trump when he grew to become contaminated.”

“Whereas this injection shouldn’t be dangerous, it was substituted for the vaccine,” he stated. “However this incidence supplies our management staff an vital alternative to evaluate and enhance the protection and technique of vaccination for every West Virginian.”



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