Death of California Resident Hours After Getting COVID-19 Vaccine Under Investigation

Multiple agencies are investigating the cause of death of a California resident who died on Thursday, just hours after receiving their COVID-19 vaccine.

The sheriff's office in Placer County, California shared information about the death on Saturday.

"There are multiple local, state, and federal agencies actively investigating this case," they said. They also clarified that reports about the California resident's death were premature and pending investigation.

Authorities did not appear to have any indication that the death was related to the COVID vaccine as few details were revealed.

It was also unclear whether the person received a COVID-19 vaccine from Moderna or Pfizer. Their identity and ties to the country were not released, said a report from ABC 10.

California Resident Tested Positive for COVID-19 in December

New York Post reported that the person tested positive for COVID-19 last month. The shot was administered on Thursday and they died several hours after.

News of the death prompted Californians to question the efficacy and safety of the COVID-19 vaccine.

One of them is Britni Tucker, who was looking forward to the vaccine as a cure for the pandemic. She has a 9-month-old daughter that she is trying to protect from the pandemic but with the recent news, she is doubtful of the vaccine.

"Now I think it's something I should definitely put more research into," she told CBS 13 Sacramento.

Others like Eric Parra said the vaccination effort just seemed too rushed and he never planned to get it in the first place.

"This was rushed just so fast. I'm not getting it myself only until I can see it works after some time," he said.

The sheriff's office said the Placer County Coroner's Office will conduct an autopsy by Monday.

Meanwhile, CBS 13 reached out to the California Department of Public Health and received a statement saying they "take these instances seriously" and are working with government partners to investigate the cause.

"We are working collaboratively and will continue to use data and science to determine how to proceed," the statement read.

The department also extended their condolences to the family of the deceased.

California Health Department Says Serious Adverse Effects of Vaccine are 'Very Small'

Last week, state epidemiologist Dr. Erica S. Pan recommended to stop vaccinating Californians with the Moderna vaccine "out of an extreme abundance of caution" after it caused an allergic reaction in less than ten people.

On the other hand, the California State Department said that while vaccines don't come without risks, "the risk of a serious adverse reaction is very small." It also cited data that shows the expected rate for anaphylaxis was about 1 in 100,000.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also said the COVID-19 vaccines do have some side effects like tiredness, headache, chills, and a fever. However, they are "normal signs" that signal a person's body is building immunity against the virus.

Fox News noted that even though the likelihood of adverse reactions is low, COVID-19 still seriously ravaged California that now has nearly 37,000 deaths and more than three million cases.

As of Saturday night, more than 41 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been distributed and 20 million have been administered throughout the U.S.