Photographer: Eric Lee / Bloomberg
Photographer: Eric Lee / Bloomberg
A health care provider in New York may have fraudulently obtained the Covid-19 vaccines and diverted them to members of the public in violation of the priority guidelines, the state government said Saturday.
New York State police have launched a criminal investigation into the matter, which could be the state’s first vaccine-related scandal.
The State Department of Health is aware of reports that ParCare Community Health Network, a provider with a clinic in northern Orange County, “may have fraudulently obtained the Covid-19 vaccine, transferred it to facilities in other parts of the state in violation of the state guidelines and diverted it to members of the public, ”State Health Commissioner Howard Zucker said in a statement.
The ParCare website shows it has six locations, including four in Brooklyn, New York, and says his patients are “mainly Hasidic, Hispanic, and African American Orthodox Jews.”
A hyperlocal Orthodox Jewish news site, BoroPark 24, published a story on Dec. 21, which said ParCare had received a shipment of Vaccines from Moderna Inc., and showed vaccine boxes in what appeared to be a refrigerator. It also had what appeared to be a copy of a ParCare ad promoting the availability of “The Newest Healthcare Revolution!” based on the “first come first served”.
Gary Schlesinger, executive director of ParCare, was quoted as saying that people who are “health workers, over 60 or have underlying conditions” can register online to get a vaccine.
This differs from state guidelines, which allow only front-line health workers, or staff and residents of nursing homes, to get the first batch of vaccines.
“We take it very seriously and DOH will assist the state police in a criminal investigation into this matter,” Zucker said in the statement. “Anyone who has knowingly participated in this scheme will be liable to the fullest extent of the law.”
ParCare representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent Saturday.