Just spoke with a close colleague, thought I'd share his story

Have changed minor details to protect him

He's an ER Doc, working in a hot spot

Few days ago, early evening, vaccine team showed up with a bunch of extra doses of Moderna vaccine

Thread

They were looking for unvaccinated employees

Most employees there had been vaccinated. Rest were unwilling

Found several EMTs & patients who were excited to be vaccinated

But hospital policy was clear: non-employees aren't eligible

My friend, ER Doc, incensed, intervened

2/4

He tried to persuade vaccine team but they wouldn't over-ride hospital policy.

He called ER leadership. They wouldn't over-ride

Next, hospital leadership. They initially said no, claiming state mandate

He is persuasive and persistent....so they eventually relented

3/4

But by then, vaccinators had left

He tracked them down. Their shift was over and per protocol, they had discarded the doses

Hearing more stories like this

No idea if these are one-offs or systemic

We aren't publicly reporting detailed data on state of vaccinations

4/5

Frustrating story but what are the lessons?

1. Hospitals need to use their extra doses to vaccinate people in their communities

2. Policies that bar non-employee vaccinations are bad, should be repealed

3. We need to collect, report more data on how vaccinations are going

Fin