CO Shuts Vaccine Site As Precaution After 11 Report Bad Reactions

COMMERCE CITY, CO — Hundreds of people were turned away from a COVID-19 vaccination site in Commerce City, Colorado, on Wednesday when 11 people reported an adverse reaction after being given the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

The people affected reported feeling nauseous and dizzy after receiving their shot at the Dick's Sporting Goods Park vaccination site, according to Colorado health officials. Two people were hospitalized for additional observation, while the rest who felt symptoms were cleared to go home after being given liquids.

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said it decided to close the vaccination site for the day out of an abundance of caution. Scott Bookman, a COVID-19 incident commander with the state, said the side effects people reported feeling were "consistent with what can be expected," according to NPR.

“We know it can be alarming to hear about people getting transported to the hospital, and we want to reassure Coloradans that the CDC and public health are closely monitoring all the authorized vaccines continually,” he said.

The 11 people who reported feeling a negative reaction to the shot made up less than 1 percent of the 1,700 who went through the site that day for their dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, NPR reports.

Last month, Johnson & Johnson had to scrap 15 million doses after it was discovered a subcontractor in Baltimore accidentally swapped materials for the J&J and AstraZeneca vaccines. The mix-up led to a nationwide shortage of the vaccine as the company worked on its quality control issues.

Concerns over negative side effects to the COVID-19 vaccines have prompted many Americans to avoid getting a shot. The Pew Research Center polled more than 10,000 people and found that 30 percent do not plan to get the vaccine, with a majority of those saying developing an adverse reaction was their chief concern.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has assured the safety and effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccines and said the most common side effects people may experience include soreness at the injection site, fever and fatigue. A few people do develop a severe allergic reaction, around 2 to 5 people for every 1 million who receive a dose.

There has also been no definitive link to people dying after receiving a COVID-19 vaccination.

“A review of available clinical information including death certificates, autopsy, and medical records revealed no evidence that vaccination contributed to patient deaths,” the CDC reports.

Some anti-vaccination groups and individuals point to a federally maintained database of adverse reactions to vaccinations as evidence of a vaccine’s danger, according to The New York Times. However, health experts have said those groups have taken the numbers out of context.

Called the Vaccine Adverse Effect Reporting System, anyone is allowed to report a reaction to the database, and the information is collected and shared so that it can be researched at a later date.

The vaccination reporting site includes a disclaimer warning users not to take the numbers at face value as they have yet to be verified through independent scientific study.

“While very important in monitoring vaccine safety, VAERS reports alone cannot be used to determine if a vaccine caused or contributed to an adverse event or illness,” the disclaimer reads. “The reports may contain information that is incomplete, inaccurate, coincidental, or unverifiable. In large part, reports to VAERS are voluntary, which means they are subject to biases.”