Colorado Vaccination Site Paused After Patients Suffer Reactions

The mass vaccination site at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City is currently on hold after multiple patients suffered adverse reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday (April 7).

According to Denver7, 11 patients began feeling nauseous and dizzy after receiving the Johnson & Johnson. Most of those affected were treated on-site, but two individuals were taken to area hospitals for observation.

Despite the reactions, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) said that the decision to pause the site was "out of an abundance of caution," and that the over 1,700 others who were vaccinated that day have no reason to be concerned.

"Getting a vaccine is far safer than getting severely sick with COVID-19," said Scott Bookman, COVID-19 Incident Commander, in a CDPHE press release. "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."

The 640 people who weren't vaccinated before the closure had their appointments automatically rescheduled for Sunday (April 11). Those who choose to keep the new appointment time will be receiving the Pfizer vaccine instead of the Johnson & Johnson.

Prior to Wednesday's incident, there had only been 10 adverse reactions at Community Vaccine Sites, according to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS).

After reopening, Denver7 reports that the Dick's site hopes to one day vaccinate up to 6,000 people per day.

Northern Colorado is currently seeking volunteers for its own mass vaccination site at The Ranch in Loveland.

The NoCo Virus Tracker articles are made possible by our partners, the Keep NoCo Open campaign that reminds citizens to wear a mask, wash your hands, physically distance and support local as Northern Colorado recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.