An Alaska health care worker was released from the hospital on Thursday after experiencing a rare but serious allergic ration to Pfizer and BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine, the Anchorage Daily News reported.
The worker was released from Bartlett Regional Hospital after staying two nights, the news outlet reports.
The New York Times reported on Wednesday that the worker experienced flushing and shortness of breath, which subsided after being treated with epinephrine.
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ADN reported that a second worker was treated for mild reaction on Wednesday, and was sent home the same day.
Alaska’s chief medical officer Anne Zink told the news outlet that multiple entities—- including the state, hospital and Food and Drug Administration—- are looking into both incidents to see if the incidents were reactions to the vaccine itself, or if it was a problem with the shipment.
The U.S. began inoculating health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities with Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine, shortly after the FDA issued it an emergency-use authorization.
The company said on Thursday that it successfully shipped 2.9 million doses, and are waiting for the U.S. government to tell them where to ship remaining doses.
Meanwhile, an independent panel of the FDA unanimously voted to recommend granting an emergency-use authorization for Moderna’s vaccine, making approval likely as early as this week.
Gen. Gustave Perna, who heads Operation Warp Speed, said it plans to send out 6 million doses within the first week of authorization.