Shipping Delays of COVID-19 Booster Are Race & Class Issue
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, October 5 2023
Contact: Cabot Petoia, clpetoia@gmail.com, 828-899-9239
** To book an interview, contact clpetoia@gmail.com **
Los Angeles – Today, St. John’s Community Health expressed concern about continued delays of COVID-19 booster shipments to their network of public health clinics in South, Central, and East Los Angeles which primarily serve marginalized and vulnerable populations, including many frontline workers.
While St. John’s has received a small shipment of COVID-19 booster shots and has slowly begun vaccinating patients who make appointments, they have been unable to open public access to vaccine appointments on MyTurn as they do not have the supply needed to meet the needs of the communities they serve.
St. John’s serves the largest population of undocumented people in the contiguous United States; thousands of unhoused people through their street medicine team; and runs the largest transgender-specific healthcare program in the United States. 97 percent of their patients are low income, and 95 percent are Latinx and/or Black.
“Our patients – many of whom work in person and live in crowded houses where it’s impossible to isolate if someone gets sick – are eager to get the COVID-19 booster,” said Jim Mangia, president and CEO of St. John’s Community Health. “We requested 3,000 vaccines three weeks ago, and to date have only received 500. FQHCs like St. John’s that serve low-income people and people of color must be prioritized in vaccine shipments. Immunity has waned significantly, and it is critical to get people basic protection against the virus as school is back in full swing and autumn approaches.”