A health care worker who experienced an allergic reaction after receiving a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at Boston Medical Center on Christmas Eve says he has a history of allergies.Dr. Hossein Sadrzadeh is a geriatric fellow who received the shot on Thursday.According to the hospital, he felt he was developing an allergic reaction similar to reactions he's had in the past."My heart rate was 150, my normal heart rate is 75 but ... six, seven minutes after the injection of the vaccine, I felt in my tongue and also my throat having, like, some weird sensation of tingling and numbness, the same reaction that I had before to my shellfish allergy," Sadrzadeh told CNN.He then self-administered an EpiPen to deliver the drug epinephrine.Sadrzadeh has a message for others who are prone to allergic reactions. "If (people) know they have the severe allergy, take the vaccine in the right setting, in a hospital setting, so at least there is appropriate care as needed," Sadrzadeh said. Sadrzadeh was rushed to the emergency department where he was treated and released.This is the first known case of allergic reaction from a Moderna coronavirus vaccine, although there have been at least six similar reported cases in the United States associated with the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine."Moderna can't confirm the incident but reported the potential adverse event through its internal safety reporting system and Moderna is further investigating the incident," Ray Jordan, a spokesperson from the biotechnology company, told CNN.

GRAFTON, Wis. —

Police have arrested a fired pharmacist who is accused of intentionally spoiling more than 500 COVID-19 vaccines at Aurora Medical Center in Grafton, Wisconsin.

The FBI and the Food & Drug Administration are investigating the person who left 57 vials of the Moderna vaccine out of a pharmacy refrigerator at Aurora Medical Center-Grafton.

The person's name is not being released until formal charges are filed.

Advocate Aurora Health now says it was an intentional act. The person in question Wednesday admitted they intentionally removed the vaccine from refrigeration.

After an internal investigation, it was first believed to be human error.

The vials were discovered outside the refrigerator Dec. 26. Aurora Health President Dr. Jeff Bahr spoke about the incident Thursday during a news conference.

"Over the subsequent days, as we continued our internal review, we became increasingly suspicious of the behavior of the individual in question," Bahr said. "The individual was suspended and after multiple interviews over the course of the week, admitted yesterday to intentionally removing the vaccine from refrigeration."

The Moderna vaccine can be out of refrigeration for 12 hours.

"We are more than disappointed that this individual’s actions will result in a delay of more than 500 people receiving their vaccine. This was a violation of our core values, and the individual is no longer employed by us," Advocate Aurora Health said.

Grafton police said Aurora Corporate Security called them at 6:18 p.m. Wednesday about an employee tampering with the vials of COVID-19 vaccine.

It said it was investigating, along with the federal agencies.

"This matter is being actively investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Food and Drug Administration and the Grafton Police Department," Grafton police said.

Officers said the value of the spoiled vaccines was between $8,000 and $11,000.

"Grafton detectives indicate that the individual knew the spoiled vaccinations would be useless and that people who received the vaccinations would think they had been vaccinated against the virus when in fact they were not," police said in a statement to sister station WISN-TV.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services said before any facility becomes a COVID-19 vaccine provider, they require extensive registration and training for storing and handling the vaccine.

"DHS requires any wasted vaccine to be reported, investigated and addressed through a written plan of improvement," the department said.

State health officials said they were now working with Aurora to make sure an incident like this never happens again.

"We feel strongly that our processes are sound, but again, this fell more to this being a bad actor involved than a bad process," Bahr said.

He added that 57 doses were able to be administered after they were found outside the refrigerator.

But Bahr said hospital officials also learned the vials were left out longer than originally reported and may not be as effective in combating the virus.

Those vaccine recipients have been notified of the situation, Bahr said.

Police said the pharmacist could be charged with first-degree recklessly endangering safety, adulterating a prescription drug and criminal damage to property.

He was being held in the Ozaukee County Jail.

The remaining doses of the vaccine that were left out of the refrigerator were discarded.

Bahr said the doses were not tampered with.

"Immediately upon notification, DHS followed up with Aurora and has worked closely with them as they have investigated the situation, reviewed their processes and implemented improvements," Wisconsin Department of Health Services Secretary Andrea Palm said in response to the incident. "We will continue to work with our healthcare partners to get as many shots in arms as quickly and safely as possible."

Investigators have not released a motive in the case.

CNN contributed.

MILWAUKEE —

The Wisconsin pharmacist who pulled dozens of COVID-19 vaccine vials from a hospital refrigerator, agreed to plead guilty in federal court of attempting to tamper with the vaccine, a review by sister station WISN 12 News of the plea agreement determined.

The agreement, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, allowed Steven Brandenburg, of Grafton, to avoid an indictment by a federal grand jury and plea to two counts of attempting to tamper with consumer products, with reckless disregard for the risk that another person will be placed in danger of death or bodily injury, the records show.

According to the deal, Brandenburg, 46, admitted to pulling the same box of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine out of the refrigerator at Aurora Medical Center - Grafton on consecutive days late last month. The Moderna vaccine needs to be stored at specific temperatures to remain effective.

"Recklessly disregarding his knowledge of the applicable storage specifications and the associated risks, Brandenburg, on two successive shifts that began on the evenings of December 24 and December 25, 2020, removed the same box of Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine from the refrigerator in the pharmacy at the Grafton Facility, for periods of multiple hours, intending to render that same vaccine inert or ineffective," the plea document noted.

During the investigation, it was determined 57 people had received doses of the vaccine from the vials in the box Brandenburg handled.

According to the plea agreement, he believed in various "conspiracy theories," subscribed to notions of "alternative history" and was skeptical of vaccines in general and the Moderna vaccine specifically.

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"Distributing the COVID-19 vaccine is critical to overcoming this pandemic, which continues to end lives and upend our economy," United States Attorney Matthew Krueger said in a news release. "As these charges show, the Justice Department will pursue anyone — and especially any medical professional — who tampers with the vaccine."

When asked about the plea deal, Brandenburg's attorney told WISN 12 News, "No comment."

Brandenburg agreed to plead guilty to the charges, which each carry a maximum sentence of 10 years' imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. A Justice Department official said the judge has complete discretion to go higher.

Brandenburg agreed to pay restitution and will be sentenced at a later date.

Brandenburg faces one misdemeanor charge of attempted criminal damage to property in Oazukee County Court.

He pleaded not guilty to that count.

Brandenburg was scheduled to be back in Ozaukee County Court on March 18.

Two weeks ago, a state review board suspended Brandenburg's pharmacy license. The hospital also fired Brandenburg.

In a court document filed five days after the last sabotage attempt, Brandenburg's wife told a divorce judge she feared for their children's safety.

Brandenburg's wife, Gretchen, relayed what she claimed their youngest daughter told her after a weekend stay with her dad.

"This is not our home, Heaven is our home," the mother said the 6-year-old told her.

"Based on these statements, I am concerned that the children are in imminent harm, specially that Steven would take the children to heaven,” the wife told the judge.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Some doctors think there will be a need for a third COVID-19 vaccine "booster" shot.

"At some point, I think it's very likely," said UC San Diego Chief of Infectious Diseases Dr. Davey Smith. "When that point is, I don't know."

A lot is unknown about the need for a booster shot, as the vaccines have only been around for six months. That's barely given researchers time to determine how long they provide complete protection against COVID-19.

Dr. Smith says it's a process that can take years.

"We follow a whole bunch of people who got a vaccine, we measure their immune responses, and then we look and see how often people are getting infected over time," he explains.

"Once we start seeing more infections below a certain level (of antibodies), then we're like, okay, so if somebody has this level of antibody and it dips below that, then perhaps we need a booster at that point," said Dr. Smith.

But measuring antibodies may not be the only indicator of the need for a booster. As the pandemic continues, doctors discover new mutations and variants of COVID-19. There is a strong possibility one of those variants could be resistant to the vaccine, requiring a booster.

"Some of the mutations might be able to evade the immune protection," said Sharp Chula Vista Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Hai Shao. "As a result, our neutralizing antibodies needs to be tweaked, to be made specifically against the new variants of viruses so that the level of protection can be modified and sustained."

Dr. Shao compares it to the flu, where the yearly vaccine includes several variants. He believes there may be a need for that type of vaccine for COVID-19.

"The likelihood is high," Dr. Shao said. "The question is when do we need the first booster, and how often do we need it after that."

In separate interviews last month, the heads of both Pfizer and Moderna said their vaccines would probably need booster shots. They did not specify when.

Current studies show the vaccines offer protection for at least six months and are effective against all known variants.

Research beyond that is ongoing.

In the meantime, Dr. Shao and Dr. Smith say everyone must get their initial doses of the vaccine to help achieve herd immunity.

"It is important for us to focus our attention and make sure that people who have not gotten the vaccine yet get it in time," said Dr. Shao.

"When you get a vaccine, you're protecting your community," said Dr. Smith. "I really want to get that message out."

This story was originally published by Jared Aarons at KGTV.