These new details come a day after the company confirmed to ABC7 News that it had terminated several members of its clinical staff due to their ‘intentional disregard’ of the admission requirements. Several current members of One Medical tell ABC7 that they plan to cancel their membership after seeing people in their 40s jump in front of the queue.
San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Marin and Alameda – including the city of Berkeley – all cut off the vaccine supply to One Medical.
“It’s really discouraging to hear,” said Andrew Levy, a current member of One Medical. “I have older parents who are struggling to get the vaccine.”
Levy has been a member for the past five years. But now he is considering cutting ties with the company.
“My healthcare provider has to live up to my values,” he said. “I think it’s a shame if they try to cheat.”
Another member told the I-Team anonymously that ‘many’ people jumped at the One Medical Four Embarcadero clinic five weeks ago.
“When I was queuing up at One Medical to get my vaccination, there were a number of people under the age of 65 waiting for their shot, and everyone got a shot that day,” an investigator said. source told ABC7. “They should not, other caregivers could not get it, teachers could not get it … the system is not right.”
According to a letter sent to One Medical Monday, the San Francisco Department of Public Health allows the company to continue administering second doses to predetermined patients, but the Department of Health has ordered that the remaining 1,600 doses must be returned.
San Mateo County Public Health has canceled their contract with the company after a persistent complaint revealed that 70 ineligible people had been vaccinated.
Marin County made the following statement:
“We have provided One Medical with just enough doses to complete the second dose of vaccinations they need to give to those who received the first doses (we advise residents to seek their second dose from the source of their first dose) any. further allocation of the first dose to One Medical suspended indefinitely, pending further investigation.We also removed One Medical from our website as a recommended, Marin County based vaccine provider.
Santa Clara County made the following statement:
“The province has provided vaccination to One Medical for about 300 health workers in their staff. No future vaccinations for One Medical are planned.”
Alameda County made the following statement:
“At the end of January, Alameda County awarded 975 doses of Pfizer vaccine so that they could vaccinate the Phase 1a health workers who were their members. After that initial grant, no other doses were given. request in early February for additional doses when they indicate that they intend to vaccinate more than their healthcare professionals (which was the only approved group prioritized before vaccinations at the time). We have no extra doses to One Medical not awarded. ‘
The provinces of Sonoma, Napa and Contra Costa told ABC7 that they do not contract with One Medical.
“Anything that happens to people who need it most to delay the vaccine costs someone their lives,” said Mike Wasserman, who sits on California’s vaccination advisory committee.
One doctor told ABC News they have a ‘zero tolerance policy’ for each case of preferential vaccine treatment. The company charges $ 199 for an annual membership.
“We stand by our policy that no ineligible employees or business affiliates will deliberately have the opportunity to jump the line. Any suggestion that there is a well-known and accepted practice for making these types of concessions , is unequivocally false, “he said. a spokesman for One Medical.
One Medical also said that they maintain numerous checkpoints where people regularly turn away who do not meet the requirements. The company added that a majority of their vaccination center does not include paying members, but referrals from health departments.
In January, Andrew Diamond, the company’s chief medical officer, told ABC7 he encouraged anyone to apply for their 30-day trial membership.
“It’s kind of a gap. If you get the 30-day trial, can you get the COVID-19 vaccine through One Medical?” Asked Luz Pena from ABC7.
“Absolutely. That’s the whole point,” Diamond said. “Our goal is to get people vaccinated as quickly as possible and as many people as possible,” Diamond replied.
ABC7 has requested an interview with One Medical, but has not yet heard from the company.
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