Investigators: Wisconsin pharmacist tried to ruin doses of COVID-19 vaccine over belief they were “unsafe”
PORT WASHINGTON, Wis. (AP/KION-TV) -- The Wisconsin pharmacist believed to have attempted to ruin hundreds of doses of COVID-19 vaccines told police he tried to do so because he felt the vaccine wasn't safe, a prosecutor said Monday.
Grafton police officers arrested the Advocate Aurora Health pharmacist last week following an investigation into 57 spoiled vials of the vaccine, which officials say would have been enough doses to inoculate more than 500 people.
The Ozaukee County District Attorney says the pharmacist, who hasn't been identified by authorities, had "formed this belief [the vaccines] were unsafe."
Charges are pending and the FBI and U.S. Food and Drug Administration are also investigating.
Advocate Aurora Health Care Chief Medical Group Officer Jeff Bahr said previously the pharmacist admitted he deliberately removed the vials from refrigeration at the Grafton medical center overnight on Dec. 24 into Dec 25, returned them, then left them out again on the night of Dec. 25 into the next day.
A pharmacy technician discovered the vials outside of the fridge on Dec. 26.
The pharmacist initially told Bahr that he removed the vials to access other items in the refrigerator and inadvertently failed to put them back.
Health officials say the pharmacist has been fired.
The Moderna vaccine is viable for 12 hours outside refrigeration, so workers used the vaccine to inoculate 57 people before discarding the rest. Police said the discarded doses were worth between $8,000 and $11,000.
Bahr said the doses people received Dec. 26 are all but useless. But Gerol said during the hearing that Moderna will need to test the doses to make sure they're ineffective before he can proceed with any charges beyond destruction of property.
