The Colorado National Guard confiscated thousands of doses of COVID-19 vaccine at a Colorado Springs medical spa on Friday, the same day health officials began an investigation into possible problems with the vaccination process there, county officials said Saturday.
The state health department stopped administering the coronavirus vaccine at Dr.’s health and wellness clinic. Moma, located inside the Satellite Hotel in southeastern Colorado Springs, on Friday after El Paso County public health officials observed the clinic during its vaccination process earlier in the day Jared Verner, deputy director of public information from the county health department, he told The Gazette Saturday.
The state health department suspended the clinic’s ability to administer vaccines “as a result of irregularities in the storage and handling of vaccines” observed by county health officials, according to a statement from the state health department sent Friday to the afternoon. Investigators are working to determine whether the actions observed on Friday were isolated or ongoing, the statement added.
Fort Carson soldiers began firing weapons as the Pueblo site shifted from state to federal execution.
On Saturday, Verner said researchers will also study whether vaccine administration documentation protocols were followed.
“There is special concern about possible temperature excursions and the lack of regular temperature control required to participate in the COVID-19 vaccination program,” he said.
The clinic will not receive doses while the investigation is ongoing, according to the state health department.
On Friday, members of the Guard confiscated thousands of doses at the clinic, which was run by Pfizer and Moderna, and took them to the state lab. One hundred and fifty doses in pre-stretched syringes “will have to be wasted because the state is not able to verify that proper handling and temperatures are maintained,” Verner said.
The COVID-19 vaccine can be opened to all members of the Fort Carson service
The state health department must complete the investigation before determining what to do with the remaining 3,000 doses, he said, adding that the department is consulting vaccine manufacturers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
More than 1,000 appointments were canceled at the location for Saturday, in addition to 6,000 appointments scheduled through May 8, according to the state health department. The clinic has been administering the vaccine since March 1, Verner said Saturday.
People who had scheduled vaccine appointments will be contacted by the state regarding reprogramming, but can be rescheduled “with any available COVID-19 vaccine provider of their choice,” Verner said. “The state will also follow up with these people to provide appointments through El Paso County public health, and the two agencies are working through the logistics to make the appointments available.”
Dr.’s health and wellness clinic Moma is run by Sylvienash Moma, who has a doctorate in nursing but is not a doctor. According to the clinic’s website, the services it offers are largely aesthetic, including facials, laser hair removal, acne treatment, tattoo removal and Botox injections.
Attempts by The Gazette to contact the clinic for comment have been unsuccessful. The clinic does not appear to have a voicemail service. His website shows that it is open on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., but that it was closed in the early hours of Saturday afternoon. A sign was posted on the door of the office that read: “Dr. Moma Health & Wellness Clinic offers vaccines against COVID-19! ”
Meanwhile, patients who have already received their vaccines at the clinic are wondering if they should be vaccinated. The clinic had administered about 4,000 vaccines by Friday, according to state health officials.
Alison Christofferson, who received her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at the medical spa on April 1, said she initially thought Dr. Moma was a doctor.
“After making the appointment, I looked for the place and found it to be a medical spa,” Christofferson said. “But I thought, ‘If they can do Botox injections, they should be able to do a shot.’
He received an email Friday afternoon saying the state health department had stopped administering the vaccines at the clinic.
“My first thought was, ‘Oh God, I should have followed my gut and never been vaccinated,'” Christofferson told The Gazette on Saturday. “It looked like fish. But I wanted the vaccine, so I have annulled my intestine ”.
Christofferson received news of the suspension because he had a second appointment scheduled at the clinic. But Sue Aspenson, who received his second dose on Friday, received the news from a friend who is a contact tracer.
“He contacted me (Friday) night and told me we’d probably see something in the news (about the suspension), but we wouldn’t be scared.” Aspenson dit. “But of course I was scared about it.”
Aspenson he said he has scoured the El Paso County public health website to try to figure out what his next step should be. She has seen guidance from health officials for those who need to reschedule vaccine appointments, she said. But, “what about people who have already received both shots? It seems I can’t get an answer. “
Christofferson, who is due to receive his second dose in about two weeks, is awaiting guidance from health officials before scheduling an appointment with another clinic.
Aspenson he waits for health officials to tell him — and other people who received two doses from the wellness clinic — what to do next.
“If I’ve received a legitimate dose, I don’t want to put more chemicals in my body,” he said. “But if the dose isn’t right, I still need the vaccine.”