Parents speak after accusing Walgreens of administering COVID-19 vaccines instead of flu shots
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WFIE/Gray News) - A family is speaking for the first time after accusing pharmacy giant Walgreens of giving them COVID-19 vaccines instead of flu shots.
Alexandria and Joshua Price told WFIE they were accidentally given the Pfizer vaccines along with their 4-year-old and 5-year-old children.
“Walgreens called me to say there was a mix-up. We did not receive the flu shot,” Alexandra Price said. “And I’m like, ‘Well, what did we get?’ And he was like, we got the COVID-19 shot, and instantly, I was like, ‘Well what does this mean for my kids?’”
The Prices took their children to a pediatric cardiologist, and the Indiana family was told both are showing signs of heart issues.
“[The cardiologist] said our daughter was having higher blood pressure than she would like,” Alexandra Price said. “And Lucas, our son, was having tachycardia.”
The family said both children have developed fevers after receiving the vaccine as well. They will have a follow-up appointment with their doctor later this week.
The family’s attorney, Daniel Tuley, shared copies of what he said were the vaccination cards for the family. The cards show the children born in 2016 and 2017 being given a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
The Pfizer vaccine isn’t authorized to be used in children younger than 12. The company is seeking approval for children as young as five, but the dosage would be one-third of the adult dose. Pfizer hasn’t sought authorization for children younger than the age of five.
Walgreens released a comment on Monday stating the company couldn’t share specifics based on privacy laws.
“In general, such instances are rare and Walgreens takes these matters very seriously,” the company said in a statement. “In the event of any error, our first concern is always our patients’ well-being. Our multi-step vaccination procedure includes several safety checks to minimize the chance of human error and we have reviewed this process with our pharmacy staff in order to prevent such occurrences.”
The family has yet to file a lawsuit against Walgreens as of Monday.
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