State and federal authorities have launched an investigation after an employee at a Wisconsin healthcare facility admitted they purposely sabotaged more than 500 doses of the coronavirus vaccine.
The Aurora Medical Center located in Grafton, Wisconsin, about 20 miles north of Milwaukee, reported the vaccine doses were damaged on Saturday (December 26), after they discovered the vials of vaccines had been left out of required refrigeration overnight by an employee.
By Wednesday (December 30), however, officials at the healthcare center say the vaccines were left out on purpose.
The facility released a statement late Wednesday night confirming that the employee “acknowledged that they intentionally removed the vaccine from refrigeration,” as reported by ABC News.
“We continue to believe that vaccination is our way out of the pandemic. We are more than disappointed that this individual’s actions will result in a delay of more than 500 people receiving their vaccine,” the facility’s statement said.
The coronavirus vaccines must be kept in specific temperatures in order to be viable, complicating distribution plans. The shipping boxes that house the vaccine feature sensors to determine if the vaccine remained in the accurate temperature during travel.
The medical center said it fired the employee and notified police, though a motive remains unclear.
This comes as the nation’s top health officials work to meet the goal of getting 20 million Americans vaccinated. So far, the CDC estimates around 2 million people have already gotten the vaccine.
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