Young women in Florida dressed like grandmothers to get coronavirus vaccine – and it might have worked

ORANGE COUNTRY, Fla. With hood on their heads and brilliant faces, two young women pretended to be elderly so they could get the coronavirus vaccine, and it looks like their job may have worked at least once.

Dr. Raul Pino of the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, said the couple were shocked when they tried to get their second shot at the Orange County Convention Center on Wednesday.

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“We did not have the willing arms to be vaccinated. We also have people who decay to be old to be vaccinated. So we realized yesterday that some young ladies were dressed as grandmothers for the second time to be vaccinated, so I do not know how they escaped the first time, but they were vaccinated (come). “The hood, the gloves, the glasses – the whole thing and it was probably in their twenties,” said Pino.

He is not sure how or even if the two young women were able to get their first doses, but when they arrived on Wednesday to complete the series, they were offered a valid vaccination card.

“There were some issues with their IDs and their driver’s license, but I do not know all the details about it,” Pino said.

He added that the vaccines noticed that they “looked funny” and stopped them before they could get the shots.

The Orange County Sheriff’s office was called after they were caught processing a report of the situation and the two women entered. Delegates said their real names appeared on the vaccination cards, but that their date of birth did not match. One woman was 34 and the other 44.

An investigation will also be launched to determine if they actually received the first shot.

‘Part of the findings we have to make is that it was really vaccinated by us (when it was vaccinated), what happened, what date, what time to try to find out if there are any holes, loopholes, in the process which allows people to do it, ”said Pino.

If the women entered their real dates of birth while registering for an appointment, they would be blocked by the system because they were not old enough, but Pino said they could use false information or get help from someone who was on the site works.

‘People are very scared to get the vaccine:’ I want it now. “And some people get really emotional. So I can also see someone say, ‘OK, we do not have that many people, yes, go by.’ So anything could have happened, “said Pino.

Although he knows that there is a lot of anxiety because residents are wondering when they can get vaccinated, he encouraged the patience with the process, as those who are most vulnerable to COVID-19 get their shots first.

“It’s a little hilarious, but it’s also disappointing, because they take the place that someone else in a much greater need could have that place,” he said.

Pino noted that security has recently been increased on the premises, where about 2,500 shots are fired daily to 65 and older as well as health workers.

‘We’re seeing an increase in strange things happening and people walking in suspiciously, people monitoring the site. That is why we requested additional security and installed cameras and other security features in the vaccination room, ”said Pino.

Nurses were also approached because strangers were leaving their shift at 10pm to ask if they had extra shots.

And the incident Wednesday is not the first time an ineligible resident has tried to get one of the coveted shots.

So there were a few. They are all different and creative. There was another person with the same name as his father, with a card, but a different birthday. But you know, we have access to a lot of information. “So we can quickly verify who is who, where they were born, you know, anything you can imagine, we have access to,” Pino said.

Yet he knows that the two young women are not the only ones slipping through the cracks.

‘I think it’s higher than we suspect, to be honest with you. “As we are working on this process and trying to get people moving fast, some people may sneak in, so it is probably higher than we suspect,” said Pino.

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