Mike Rosenthal
Amanda Kloots has a message for those who criticize her for getting the COVID-19 vaccine recently.
On Friday, the 38-year-old fitness instructor – whose husband Nick Cordero died in July 2020 after contracting the virus and spending more than 90 days in hospital – shared on social media that she could receive her first dose of vaccine.
In Los Angeles, only essential workers and people over the age of 65 are currently eligible to book vaccine appointments. Her message led to a backlash from followers who accused her of jumping the line.
“I think it’s crazy that people are trying to make it a scandalous thing,” Kloots told PEOPLE exclusively on Saturday.
“Everyone can do what I did,” says the mother of one. “The more arms we get vaccinated, the better. I took my chance and went with two of my friends to a vaccination center in eastern LA. We waited in a long line and hoped. After all the appointments were over were, we have if there were still vaccines, because if they have extra vaccines, they want to put them in their arms instead of getting rid of them. And they said, ‘We have extra vaccines for you.’ I immediately got the chills and started crying. ‘
RELATED: Amanda Kloots Gets the COVID Vaccine After the Death of the Man, Slams Backlash: ‘Don’t Vaccinate Me Shamelessly’
amanda kloots / instagram
It was a special moment for Kloots to get the vaccine, especially after she lost her husband to the disease that would protect it.
“We took a chance like I said, and everyone can try – and the fact that there was a setback took away this beautiful and emotional moment for me,” The talk host tells PEOPLE. “Vaccination should not be done, especially if you are waiting in line and would otherwise be thrown out.”
“I’m just happy and extremely grateful that we took a chance, and it easily could not have worked out,” Kloots continues. “We could have been turned away and it would have been good. People did it and you just have to be willing to wait. Every arm that this vaccine goes on is a beautiful thing. We should not shame anyone who gets this vaccine that America will help get back on track. ‘
While receiving her first COVID vaccine shot, Kloots shared a photo on Instagram and wrote how grateful she was to get the vaccine.
amanda kloots / instagram Amanda Kloots
“I’m scared to death since Nick got the virus as a single mother and now I’m one step closer to safety,” she wrote.
Cordero died in early July at the age of 41 after spending more than three months in the intensive care unit at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles due to complications related to COVID-19.
RELATED: Amanda Kloots opens on ‘Finally ready to go to therapy’ 6 months after Nick Cordero’s death
Ashley Becker
During his 95 days in the hospital, 42 of which were spent in a medically induced coma, the Broadway star faced a series of unpredictable complications that led to septic shock and his right leg had to be amputated.
Kloots also addressed her critics on Friday in a series of videos on her Instagram story.
“Vaccination should not happen. Everyone should get this vaccine, and everyone who gets it should celebrate that another person gets the vaccine,” she said.