National Guard mix-up sparks COVID vaccine security scare, Wisconsin hospital says
A COVID-19 vaccine security scare at a Wisconsin hospital turned out to be merely a location mix-up.
Tuesday evening, three people walked into Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee claiming to be with the National Guard, the hospital told WISN. The trio told staff members they were there to pick up the COVID-19 vaccine.
After hospital staff questioned them, the three people said they were at the wrong hospital and left, The Wauwatosa Patch reported.
The interaction raised eyebrows among hospital staff.
“Because the visit was unannounced and unexplained, we contacted law enforcement as well the state officials overseeing vaccine distribution,” Gerry C. Steele, a representative for Froedtert, told the Patch.
Staff members explained to authorities they thought people might be impersonating National Guard troops to steal the vaccine, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. Not long after, the state Department of Health Services sent an alert to vaccine providers warning them to stay vigilant.
Other hospitals and health care providers in the area also warned their employees. An email obtained by WISN showed that an area pharmacist cautioned staff to avoid letting anyone dressed as a member of the National Guard inside, according to the news station.
The incident, however, was just a mix-up.
An investigation confirmed the three people were, indeed, National Guard troops, the Patch reported.
The nearby Medical College of Wisconsin was expecting a vaccine shipment and asked for help, Wisconsin National Guard spokesman Capt. Joe Trovato told the Journal. The three National Guard members didn’t have directions to the correct building on the campus.
He said the trio got lost and ended up in the wrong building which “raised some concerns, rightfully so,” but they were ultimately able to contact the rest of their team and get to the right location, the Journal reported.
In a statement to WITI, Froedtert representative Steve Schooff commended hospital staff for speaking up. “We are grateful for the staff members who raised the concern, allowing us to make the appropriate contacts and confirmations.”
The state Department of Health Services echoed the hospital’s sentiments.
“Even though it turned out to be a false alarm, we feel secure in knowing our partners are taking protection of the vaccine supply seriously,” it said in a statement to the Journal. “We wanted our partners to be aware of the situation in the event something similar happened to them.”
The scare comes just weeks after a Wisconsin hospital pharmacist was arrested after allegedly ruining hundreds of COVID-19 vaccines on purpose, McClatchy News previously reported.
Police say the pharmacist — who has since been fired from the Aurora Medical Center in Grafton — left out 500 doses of the Moderna vaccine without refrigerating them, according to McClatchy.
The vaccine must be kept in cold storage to be effective.
Officials are seeking several charges against the unnamed pharmacist, including felony recklessly endangering safety, adulterating a prescription drug and criminal damage to property.
Officials say security is tight at area locations offering the vaccine, including the Wisconsin Center where Mayor Tom Barrett says access to the vials is limited.
“The freezer is located in a locked location,” Barrett told WISN. “The location has very limited access. It needs a key card to be accessed, and the health department will have control of all of those access keys. And when I say all of them, it’s a very limited number.”
This story was originally published January 14, 2021 at 11:01 AM with the headline "National Guard mix-up sparks COVID vaccine security scare, Wisconsin hospital says."