A pharmacy in Virginia incorrectly administered Pfizer and BioNTech’s Covid-19 shots to 112 children last week, according to the state Department of Health. “The pharmacy attempted to provide a proper dose,” Loudoun County Health Department director Dr. David Goodfriend told CNBC on Thursday.
He said it appears the pharmacy did administer about a third of the adult dose, which should be the correct amount. However, “a lower dose is possible if not all of the 0.1 ml was administered into muscle,” he said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cleared Pfizer’s shots for kids ages 5 to 11 last week at a third of the dosage for older age groups.
Although Pfizer makes special color-coded vials for younger children to ensure they get the right dosage, employees at a pharmacy in Aldie, Virginia — about 36 miles outside of Washington, D.C. — pulled the doses from the vials intended for anyone 12 and older.
Goodfriend alerted parents in a letter sent out Wednesday that Ted Pharmacy may have administered a lower dose than recommended. State and federal officials told the pharmacy to stop distributing shots altogether on Friday before seizing all of its Covid doses, a Virginia health department spokesperson said in a statement.
Goodfriend added that his department was not aware of any children receiving too much vaccine. Virginia’s Department of Health said Ted Pharmacy administered the improper vaccine doses from Nov. 3 to 4, within two days of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approving Pfizer’s Covid shots for children 5 to 11. READ MORE
