Family Health Services clarifies scope of vaccine storage problem
No evidence doses were spoiled, CEO says
SANDUSKY — Family Health Services says 65 patients — including 61 Sandusky Schools students — may have received vaccines of reduced potency following a refrigerator monitoring issue discovered last year at its East Water Street clinic.
In a response to questions from StayTunedSandusky, CEO David Tatro said a total of 117 doses across eight vaccine types are potentially affected, including meningococcal, HPV, Tdap, influenza, and MMRV.
Tatro said the clinic is being careful.
“We do not know whether or not the vaccines were spoiled, there is no evidence to support that,” Tatro wrote. “However, we erred on the side of caution and worked closely with the Ohio Department of Health.”
Timeline and notification
According to Tatro, the issue began June 26, 2024, when a temperature monitoring device stopped working. Mary Peters, who had just begun as medical director, discovered the lapse. The clinic said there is no evidence of an actual temperature excursion (exposure to temperatures outside of the recommended safe range) but notified the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) on Feb. 18, 2025.
Parents were not notified until Aug. 25, 2025, after ODH directed FHS to complete its corrective action plan. Letters were mailed to all affected families that week. StayTunedSandusky.com has made a public records request to look at the corrective action plan.
Vaccines and patients affected
Vaccines potentially compromised included:
Meningitis vaccine (Menquadfi) – 31 doses
HPV vaccine (human papillomavirus) – 19 doses
Meningitis B vaccine – 21 doses
Whooping cough/tetanus/diphtheria vaccine (Tdap) – 15 doses
Flu shot (Flulaval brand) – 19 doses
Flu shot (Afluria brand) – 5 doses
Combination vaccine for diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and polio (DTaP-IPV) – 4 doses
Combination vaccine for measles, mumps, rubella, and chickenpox (MMRV) – 3 doses
Of the 65 patients affected, 61 were Sandusky Schools students. Multi-dose vials were involved in 31 cases.
Next steps
Tatro said no patients have requested revaccination so far, but the clinic will re-administer any affected vaccines free of charge. He said he has personally met with Sandusky Schools officials and provided his cell phone number for families seeking follow-up.
“Patients who received letters and ask for revaccination were instructed to contact the medical director,” Tatro said. “We will revaccinate as appropriate.”
Systems and safeguards
The vaccines were stored in ABS pharmaceutical-grade refrigerators installed in October 2022 and recommended by ODH. They were monitored with buffered probes, data loggers, and backed by a generator.
Seventy-three doses were returned to the state’s Vaccines for Children (VFC) program as a precaution. All affected vaccines were VFC-supplied, not privately purchased.
Tatro said FHS has retrained staff and revised its vaccine eligibility, administration, and compliance processes to prevent future problems.