NEW YORK DAILY NEWS – As Missouri’s public officials feud over mask mandates, and COVID cases and deaths surge, anti-vaxxers – of which there are many in the state, given its 50% full-vaccination rate – are resorting to sneaking around in disguises to get shots, according to one doctor.
Dr. Priscilla Frase is a hospitalist and chief medical information officer at Ozarks Healthcare.
She said in a video the health care facility posted to Facebook:
“I work closely with our pharmacists who are leading our vaccine efforts through our organization,”
“One of them told me the other day that they have had several people who have come in to get vaccinated who have kind of tried to disguise their appearance.
“They even went so far as to say, ‘Please, please, please, don’t let anybody know that I got this vaccine. I don’t want my friends to know. I don’t want to get COVID. I want to get the vaccine.’ “
No disguise details were forthcoming, and the prevalence was not known, but the fact that people were more worried about their relationships falling apart than they were about dying – or infecting their loved ones – pointed to a need for a lack of shaming, she said.
“They are very concerned about if people that they love, people within their family, friendship circles, and work circles would find out if they got the vaccine,” Frase said … READ MORE.
Puerto Rico’s governor announces mask mandate
AP, SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Puerto Rico’s governor announced Wednesday that all public employees must be vaccinated against the coronavirus starting next month as the U.S. territory reports a new rise in cases.
The executive order goes into effect Aug. 16 with few exceptions. Those who refuse to get inoculated will be required to submit a negative virus test weekly. If an employee refuses to get tested, they will be forced to use their vacation days and eventually may not be paid, Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said.
“To finish defeating the pandemic, this is the step to follow,” he said. “Vaccination is the solution.”
Some 27,000 government employees are affected by the order, which comes a day after Pierluisi ordered that masks once again be worn indoors.
The island of 3.3 million people has reported more than 124,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and more than 2,500 deaths related to COVID-19. More than 76% of the population has received at least a first vaccine dose.
