SANTA FE SPRINGS, California (Reuters) – Jose Luis Espinoza had been chasing a COVID-19 vaccine for more than three weeks.
He hadn’t hugged his 98-year-old father in a long time and hoped a vaccine would change that. Last week, he found gold in Santa Fe Springs.
“It was the last dose they gave and I was lucky,” said the 68-year-old.
The search for surplus vaccine doses is wide and competitive in Los Angeles. The wait can last for hours outside a clinic or vaccination site, and most people are rejected without an injection.
Clinics have leftover doses when people cancel their appointments at the last minute or don’t show up. Once opened, the vaccine vials have an expiration date: 5 days for the Pfizer vaccine and 30 days for the Moderna.
“We need to make sure that we get this vaccine out, that we have the people registered and the resources and the event scheduled,” said Will Baker, clinical manager of the private ambulance service CARE Ambulance, emphasizing the importance of not wasting any of the precious doses.
‘NEVER GUARANTEED’
Vaccine hunters have been criticized for taking doses when it is not their turn, perhaps removing them from someone who may need them most.
“I’m here in the hope that there is someone left,” said Cynthia Perez, 48, the first to arrive when the Santa Fe Springs clinic opened at 2pm.
“So I’m not trying to skip the line. I’m just trying to take advantage of any vaccines or doses that can be thrown away, ”she said.
Perez said she had a child with asthma and she herself was in poor health, adding: “I’m trying to get ahead and stay healthy.”
As the night progressed, the line of hunters outside the clinic grew and Baker took notes. Throughout the day, he counted the doses that were missing at each vaccination post, reviewed the list of appointments and did the math.
When the clinic closed at 6 pm, and a single shot remained, he called the name Espinoza.
“I reviewed the guidelines and looked for anyone on the line who was 1A,” explained Baker, referring to the first category of vaccine allocation, as recommended by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We had a person on the line who met criteria 1A and we were able to get him a vaccine today,” he said.
Then Baker went out and told the rest of the line that there were no more doses during the day, apologizing and thanking everyone for their patience.
Perez took his bag and returned home, disappointed but not discouraged.
“You can’t be upset. It is never guaranteed, ”she said.
Reporting by Norma Galeana; Editing by Sandra Stojanovic, Karishma Singh and Gerry Doyle