A New York City hospital apologized to the team after revealing that some workers received the coronavirus vaccine despite being in low-risk categories, according to a report by The New York Times.
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Some New York hospital employees cut the line for the COVID-19 vaccine: report
In an e-mail to the team obtained by the Times, an executive at Morgan Stanley Presbyterian Hospital for Children in New York said he was “disappointed and saddened by what happened.”
Hospital distribution rules state that the most exposed workers must receive the vaccine first.
However, amid rumors that anyone could apply for the vaccine, several low-risk workers, some of whom worked from home during the pandemic, received it, the Times reported.
“We are proud to have vaccinated thousands of staff who deal with patients in just one week and will continue to do so until everyone receives the vaccine,” said NewYork-Presbyterian in a statement.
“We are following all New York State Department of Health guidelines on vaccine priority, with our initial focus on [intensive care unit] and [emergency department] staff and equitable access for all, “he said.
The Hill contacted NewYork-Presbyterian for confirmation and comments.
Workers at several other hospitals in the New York City area also told the Times that they opposed the way the vaccine had been distributed, but feared professional retaliation for speaking out. Some doctors at Mount Sinai Hospital reportedly managed to join the vaccine queue simply by saying that they were dealing with “COVID-related procedures”.
Most states gave priority to health professionals and the elderly in the distribution of the vaccine. Individual hospitals are free to develop their own vaccination plans, according to the Times.
A Mount Sinai doctor said that not all the rumors about how easy it was to jump the line were true, but that their very existence showed a lack of confidence among workers.
Ramon Tallaj, who serves on a vaccine advisory task force, told the Times that the sense of competition is likely to disappear as access to the vaccine improves.
“People are going to fight to see who goes first or not, but the important thing is that it happens,” he told the newspaper.
“I think the sad thing is that people are starting to turn on each other,” a doctor who works at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital told the Times. “Can you honestly say that this employee deserves it before me? No, but nobody deserves it before anyone else.”
Updated
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