Loretto CEO George Miller said he authorized a vaccine clinic at the Trump International Hotel and Tower in downtown Chicago on March 10 for hospitality workers.
In a memo obtained by CNN, Miller told the team in part “We were, at the time, under the impression that restaurants and other top hospitality industry employees were considered ‘essential’ by the City of Chicago’s 1b eligibility requirements. ”
Ahmed owns a $ 2 million Trump Tower condo, according to the Cook County property tax portal.
CNN has contacted the Trump organization twice, but has yet to receive any comment. CNN also contacted Ahmed for comment.
Dr. Allison Arwady, a commissioner in the Chicago Department of Public Health, said that some people who did not meet the eligibility requirements received the injection.
“The biggest concern here is that they were vaccinating people who were not yet eligible, but then added to that, of course, the biggest concern is that they were prioritizing people who were well connected and allowing them to skip the line” said Arwady. “It is disappointing to know where the providers we prioritize are not choosing to live up to their mission.”
Last Wednesday, the chairman of the Loretto Hospital board of trustees, Edward M. Hogan, said the board would continue to investigate irregularities.
“If our analysis reveals anything else that indicates that our processes have been compromised, there will be additional consequences imposed on those responsible for these actions,” he said in a statement.
Julie Kudlacz, a hospital spokeswoman, said in an email exchange with CNN on Wednesday that vaccines administered at Trump Tower were not part of Protect Chicago Plus, a municipal program focused on vaccinating minority communities.
They were part of the hospital’s vaccine distribution, Kudlacz said.
Kudlacz also told CNN that a hospital audit revealed that 68 of the 72 people who received the vaccine at the Trump Tower were black, Latin or Asian. The remaining four were classified as other / non-Hispanic.
Miller said in his testimony that the clinic at Trump Tower resulted from requests from West Side residents.
Illinois Governor: ‘It is unacceptable to let people skip the line’
Councilwoman Emma Mitts said last year that she lost count of how many friends – many of whom voted for her – died because of Covid-19.
“There were so many things that we couldn’t keep up with and it was heartbreaking,” she said. “They would call and say, ‘My mom passed away’.”
After more than a year of suffering from Covid-19, Mitts is now dealing with a different type of pain. The hospital is located in the Austin neighborhood, close to the wing that Mitts, who has been a councilor for two decades, represents. She said her constituents are among the most vulnerable.
“Making that happen is certainly a tragedy,” said Mitts. “Everyone shouldn’t have to pay for someone else’s mistake when you know they had nothing to do with it.”
Illinois state senator Kimberly A. Lightford, vice president of the Loretto Board of Trustees, said Miller and Ahmed were “reprimanded” by the hospital’s Board of Trustees.
“And that doesn’t change the fact that what they did wrong is wrong,” said Lightford, adding that the public may hear of more irregularities linked to the distribution of vaccines. “We extensively rebuked the hospital president and (ex) COO. The sanctions were applied (and) the financial charges as well. None of them were satisfied, of course. Maybe we thought we were a little heavy. again. “
Lightford said that she, like Mitts, is disappointed.
“I think they did a bad job going to the Trump Tower,” she said. “My frustration is when no one follows the rules here … everyone suffers, but I think the hospital is dealing with this.”
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker called what happened “unacceptable”.
“It is unacceptable to allow people to cross the line, especially if people have blurred their path,” he said.
People who need the vaccine most can suffer, says the doctor
The Chicago Department of Public Health issued a statement saying it will ensure that people vaccinated through Loretto can receive their second dose in time.
Loretto will not receive the first doses until the CDPH can confirm that Loretto’s vaccination strategies and reporting practices meet all of the CDPH requirements, according to a statement by the Mayor of Chicago’s office, Lori Lightfoot.
The city’s first Covid-19 vaccines were administered at the Loretto hospital in December. The hospital was chosen because of the community’s need and its proximity to the Austin neighborhood.
The hospital was also the first to create a West Side community test site in April 2020. State statistics show that this area saw 10,535 cases of Covid-19, the second most cases of Covid-19 in the state, according to the Loretto hospital.
Dr. Wendy Goodall McDonald – who treats patients across the city – said that the people who need the vaccine most could suffer.
“I think the withdrawal of vaccines to the area will harm and harm the black and brown communities,” she said. “They removed it from an area on the West Side of Chicago where there is already a shortage or a shortage of places where people can be vaccinated.”
McDonald, who is an obstetrician-gynecologist at Women’s Health Consulting, said that some of his patients had difficulty getting appointments for the Covid-19 vaccine, comparing appointments with trying to get tickets to Beyoncé’s shows.
She said she hopes the controversy surrounding this case will motivate minority communities that are hesitant to receive the vaccine.
“The vaccine is safe,” she said. “See people crying out for this.”
Alderman Mitts, who received two doses of the vaccine earlier this year in Loretto, said he did not want the people he served for nearly two decades to miss a life-saving vaccine.