SANTA FE SPRINGS, Calif. (Reuters) – Jose Luis Espinoza has been on a COVID-19 vaccine for more than three weeks.
He stopped hugging his 98-year-old father and hoped a vaccine would change that. Last week, he struck gold in Santa Fe Springs.
“It was the last dose they gave and I was the lucky one,” said the 68-year-old.
Tracking for the remaining vaccine doses is widespread and competitive in Los Angeles. Waiting can take hours outside a clinic or vaccination site, and most people are removed without a hit.
Clinics have doses left when people cancel their appointments at the last minute or do not show up. Once opened, the vaccine vials have an expiration date: 5 days for the Pfizer vaccine and 30 days for the Moderna vaccine.
“We need to make sure that we get that vaccine, that we have the people enrolled and the resources and the event scheduled,” said Will Baker, the clinic’s manager for the private ambulance service CARE Ambulance, stressing the importance of not wasting any of the precious doses.
“NEVER GUARANTEED”
Vaccine hunters have been criticized for receiving doses when it’s not their turn, they probably took it from someone who might need it more.
“I’m here hoping there might be something left,” said 48-year-old Cynthia Perez, the first to arrive when the Santa Fe Springs clinic opened at 2 p.m.
“It simply came to our notice then. I’m just trying to take advantage of any vaccines or any doses that could be thrown away, “she said.
Perez said she had a child with asthma and that she herself was facing health problems, adding: “I try to get a little ahead of the curve and stay healthy.”
As the evening wore on, the line of outsiders outside the clinic grew, and Baker took down his details. Throughout the day, he counted the remaining doses at each vaccination station, reviewed the schedule and made calculations.
When the clinic closed at 18:00 and only one shot remained, he called Espinoza’s name.
“We went over the guidelines and looked for anyone on line 1A,” Baker said, referring to the first vaccine allocation category recommended by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We had only one person in line who met 1A criteria and we managed to get a vaccine today,” he said.
Then Baker went outside and told the rest of the line that there were no more doses for that day, apologizing and thanking everyone for their patience.
Perez picked up his bag and headed 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