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California pauses use of Moderna vaccine batch over allergic reactions

WION Web Team
California, United StatesUpdated: Jan 18, 2021, 03:50 PM IST
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Photograph:(AFP)

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California's top epidemiologist Dr. Erica S Pan issued a statement recommending the pause in the administration of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine lot '041L20A'

California health officials are asking for pausing the use of a huge batch of Moderna's coronavirus vaccine due to its ''higher-than-usual number of possible allergic reactions''.

California's top epidemiologist Dr. Erica S Pan issued a statement recommending the pause in the administration of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine lot '041L20A'.

"A higher-than-usual number of possible allergic reactions were reported with a specific lot of Moderna vaccine administered at one community vaccination clinic. Fewer than 10 individuals required medical attention over the span of 24 hours," Dr. Pan said.

According to the statement, "Out of an extreme abundance of caution and also recognizing the extremely limited supply of vaccine, we are recommending that providers use other available vaccine inventory and pause the administration of vaccines from Moderna Lot 041L20A until the investigation by the CDC, FDA, Moderna and the state is complete. We will provide an update as we learn more."

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California, like many states, has struggled to use up as much vaccine as it received in initial allotments from the federal government, administering only about a third of the nearly 2.5 million doses shipped to the state as of Monday.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has set a goal of inoculating 1 million more Californians by the end of this week with the first shot of the two-dose vaccine.

California, the most populous state with nearly 40 million people, has accounted for much of the US surge since November.

State officials reported 42,299 newly recorded confirmed cases Sunday, pushing the total to 2.9 million since the pandemic began a year ago.

California hospitals have grown so full of COVID-19 patients that state officials ordered hospitals to delay non-life-threatening surgeries, preserving space for serious cancer removal and necessary heart operations.

Outside many Southern California hospitals, ambulances loaded with COVID-19 patients wait for hours until space becomes available in the intensive care unit (ICU) or emergency room (ER).