SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – Sharp HealthCare is being questioned after more than 300 San Diego police officers and Fire-Rescue workers got the COVID-19 vaccine before its scheduled turn.
Sharp HealthCare defends its actions and reports that it made the right decision in the circumstances in which vaccine doses are expected to expire.
San Diego County officials confirmed with ABC10 News that the county learned Tuesday morning that Sharp HealthCare had 300 shots to expire, so hospital staff directed officers to come in and get vaccinated. The county reported that Sharp HealthCare did not notify in advance, or the county would have directed Sharp HealthCare to vaccinate eligible Phase 1A recipients, such as health care workers and residential residents.
Police officers and firefighters are considered essential workers that are included in phase 1B of the vaccine distribution plan. This phase has not begun.
A Sharp HealthCare spokesman confirmed Tuesday afternoon that Monday around 7:30 p.m., he did not contact the county for a directive on what to do with his vaccine surplus because it was out of the question. schedule. Instead, the spokesman said Sharp HealthCare reported that it was moving quickly with a plan to vaccinate first aid, with most being SDPD officers, but also some firefighters. The spokesman said they could not anticipate having this surplus in the vaccine inventory.
The spokesman characterized it as a winning gain, as Sharp HealthCare was able to use the vaccines before they expired and hundreds of agents were vaccinated. The spokesman added that the state allows hospitals to deliver the vaccine to lower priority groups when the doses are about to expire.
County officials reported Tuesday afternoon that the county has asked the state to run hospitals in similar positions to notify it and coordinate with the county before moving to a different priority level.
ABC10 News contacted SDPD for comments. A representative of the city of San Diego sent the following statement.
“As the city’s health partner, Sharp Healthcare contacted around 7:30 p.m. yesterday to offer 300 free vaccines in the city that were due to expire at 9 a.m. Today. Knowing that time was of the essence to use these valuable resources, vaccinations were administered to first aiders of the city’s security and fire departments who work closely with the public every day.There were approximately 120 vaccines administered to EMT / Rescue Paramedics and 186 administered to police officers The City of San Diego recognizes the importance of maintaining the health of our public safety personnel and will continue to work with all of our partners. “