Disciplinary action has been taken against Chief Operating Officer Gary Purushotham of Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose over an incident involving COVID-19 vaccines inappropriately offered to the staff of a school district, a spokesperson for the hospital said.
The San Jose Spotlight first obtained the email from the Los Gatos Union School District's superintendent that urged employees to sign up for appointments as health care workers after the hospital offered them slots.
About 65 teachers subsequently received shots, bypassing Santa Clara County eligibility requirements that prioritize seniors and health care workers.
The appointments were offered by Good Samaritan for what school district Superintendent Paul Johnson's email framed as a gesture made in return for a past fundraising effort on behalf of the hospital.
Johnson later apologized for that characterization, calling it "his own personal interpretation."
After the incident came to light, the county stopped supplying first doses to the hospital until it submits a plan for abiding by county guidelines.
Good Samaritan CEO Joe DeSchryver also apologized for the incident, saying the offer was made in order to avoid wasting unused doses that had thawed.
But Santa Clara County Counsel James Williams, answering a question at a Tuesday briefing, said the offer did not "appear [to be] related to wastage."
Williams said "a lot of factors" about the incident were concerning, including that the district "appeared to be affirmatively suggesting that staff should sign up ... as if they were health care workers."
"The sign-up system is an attestation that you are who you say you are," Williams said. "We are requiring people to attest, that means under penalty of perjury, to affirm their eligibility."
Good Samaritan says the hospital's revised vaccination plan will be submitted to the county by the end of the week.
—Polly Stryker and Jon Brooks
