This science teacher was arrested for vaccinating a student

A science teacher from New York — who had no formal medical qualifications — was arrested for allegedly giving a COVID-19 vaccine to a student.

Per BBC News, police said Laura Russo gave the dose to the 17-year-old male student at her home.

• Russo did not have consent from the boy’s parents.
• Russo had no legal right to distribute COVID-19 vaccines.
• The teacher could face four years in prison for the incident.
• Russo has been removed from her classroom and reassigned until an investigation is over, according to the New York Post.

Police said it’s still unclear how Russo got her hands on the COVID-19 vaccine. It’s also unclear which COVID-19 vaccine brand she tried to use, according to BBC News.

• The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is the only COVID-19 vaccine available for children under 18 years old, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Monica Gandhi, an infectious disease expert at the University of California at San Francisco, told The Washington Post that COVID-19 vaccines should only be distributed by health professionals, who receive proper training for distribution.

• She said it’s “quite tricky” to distribute mRNA COVID-19 vaccines as well since they require specific temperatures and proper handling.