World News | Hospital Execs Punished for Improper Chicago Vaccine Events
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. Two Chicago hospital executives have been reprimanded for COVID-19 vaccine events that improperly gave shots to people far from the West Side facility, including one held for workers at Trump Tower.
Chicago, Mar 22 (AP) Two Chicago hospital executives have been reprimanded for COVID-19 vaccine events that improperly gave shots to people far from the West Side facility, including one held for workers at Trump Tower.
Loretto Hospital's Board of Directors released a statement Friday saying they had “taken appropriate actions of reprimand” against Loretto's president and CEO, George Miller, and Chief Operating Officer Dr Anosh Ahmed.
A hospital spokeswoman did not immediately respond to an email on Monday requesting comment from Miller and Anosh in reaction to the board's decision.
City health officials said last week they would withhold first doses of COVID-19 vaccines from the hospital as authorities investigate the events.
The backlash followed local media reporting on several vaccination events held outside the hospital, which primarily serves Black and Latino residents in West Side neighbourhoods. The hospital was chosen last year to administer Chicago's ceremonial first COVID-19 vaccination as part of the city's efforts to encourage people to get the shot.
Block Club Chicago first reported vaccination events that hospital officials organized at Trump Tower in downtown Chicago and at the hospital president's suburban church.
WBEZ reported that county judges and family members improperly received vaccines from the hospital.
“While it is the estimation of the Board that all reported events stemmed from a sincere desire to vaccinate as many eligible Chicagoans as possible -- especially people of colour -- as quickly as possible, we acknowledge that actions were taken that fall outside the scope of The Loretto Hospital's core mission,” the hospital board said in Friday's statement.
State Rep. La Shawn Ford, a member of the hospital's board, told the Chicago Sun-Times that the reprimand did not include firing Miller or Ahmed but would not provide more detail. Another board member, state Sen. Kimberly Lightford, also declined to specify the board's actions, Block Club Chicago reported. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)