Taoyuan Veterans Hospital will be fined NT$250,000 (US$7,980) for mistakenly inoculating 118 children under 3 years of age with flu shots not meant for the age group, Taoyuan City Government said Friday.
No immediate adverse effects have been reported relating to any of the children, according to the hospital, which issued a statement apologizing for the error the same day.
The city government said that during a vaccination event from Oct. 1-2, the hospital gave the children vaccine doses manufactured by Taiwan’s Adimmune Corp., which are not suitable for infants under the age of 3.
According to Chinese language media, the hospital did not realize its mistake until one of the children’s parents later contacted the local government to check whether the Adimmune flu vaccine was suitable for young children.
As a result of its failure to check the vaccine doses both during delivery and administration, the hospital violated the Medical Care Act, the city government said.
According to the hospital, the parents of 116 of the 118 children contacted as of the previous day reported no abnormal reactions to the vaccine.
The city government has convened a committee to determine responsibility for the hospital’s mistake.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel