Younger patients without a doctor’s note receive COVID-19 vaccines at Miami Dade College

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – At the state-run COVID-19 vaccination site, supported by FEMA, on the north campus of Miami Dade College, the official line is that if you are under 65 and have underlying health conditions, you need a medical note to get a vaccine.

But several young adults we talk to say they received a vaccine without it.

“I think it’s great that people are getting vaccinated so they can come back to life like they used to,” said Sebastian Davalos, 22.

Davalos said he has no underlying illness. They asked him if he had a medical note, but he said no.

“Register, you will get the vaccine. It’s as easy as that, ”he said.

Local 10 News also spoke with Stephany Lopez, 29, and her husband David Márquez, 28

“They asked us for the license and that’s it,” said Márquez, who acknowledged that he and his wife have no medical notes or underlying health conditions.

The couple was at the vaccination site on Tuesday with their daughter, who turns 15 on Wednesday. They had known from friends that those who worked at the site did not review the doctor’s notes.

Announcements

“We thought that if they asked for the doctor’s note we would go home, but we wanted to take a risk because we thought it was worth it,” Lopez said. “We want [our daughter] to be able to see his grandparents ”.

Some people waited hours to secure a parking spot at the Miami Dade College vaccination site on Tuesday, but said the actual process from registration to dose administration took less than an hour. The site can make about 3,000 shots a day.

On Monday, Jackson Jackson Health System announced separately that it would expand access to vaccines and would not require documentation for people who claim to be at high risk.

Memorial Healthcare System and Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital have teamed up with Jackson and Nicklaus Children’s Hospital to expand vaccines to 16- and 17-year-old patients. At DiMaggio, “they must be Florida residents or seasonal residents and must have completed a medical visit to Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital doctor’s office or visit telehealth, or must have visited a department of JDCH or Memorial Healthcare System, 24/7 emergencies, urgent care centers or hospitals for the last twelve months for one of the high-risk medical conditions that meet the requirements. ”For more information, click here.

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As for FEMA-supported sites, Wednesday is the last day of satellite sites in Florida City and Sweetwater before moving to new satellites in North Miami Beach and Miami Springs. The site on the north campus of Miami Dade College remains in place. For more information on the changes, click here.

On Saturday, the Florida City site was also vaccinating anyone who showed up who was 18 or older, with a medical grade or not, because demand for gunfire was low.

Infectious disease experts say the overall goal is to get arms shots to help the community get closer to a version of the old normal.

Announcements

“Whenever we move in that direction, we can get back to a pretty normal lifestyle,” said Dr. Aileen Marty of Florida International University.