Letters to the Editor: Don’t blame vaccine line jumpers. Blame the feds for a botched rollout

To the editor: The real issue with COVID-19 vaccination isn’t line jumping, but rather the completely ineffective rollout of the vaccine itself. If you’re going to call people out using your editorial pulpit, call out the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the government responsible for getting the hundreds of millions of people vaccinated that will be required to end this pandemic.

I’m not attempting to justify those who would seek to “jump the line,” but we need to stop effectively rationing the vaccine and worrying so much about whether or not the CDC guidelines have been met to the letter. The only reason someone would be willing to pay $25,000 to get a shot is because they don’t believe they are going to get that shot in any rational period of time. And they would be right, given the current rollout.

We need mass vaccination. Turn Dodger Stadium into an inoculation center, not just a testing center. We need mobile vaccination facilities, and we need to let people know now where they stand in terms of their priority.

I will turn 65 next May. Why have I been lumped into the same category as 16-year-olds for inoculation prioritization by the state and the CDC? You may want to look at the reasons why people might want to create a vaccine black market rather than just pointing out that one may soon exist.

David Botfeld, Santa Monica

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To the editor: There should be no vaccine priority loopholes, and no jumping the line. If any medical center cannot figure out the concept of a waiting list, perhaps it should not be trusted to vaccinate people.

Every distributor should have a waiting list of unvaccinated people prioritized according to federal guidelines. Don’t give shots out to the friends of a friend who happens to know someone at the clinic.

Debra Wallace, Long Beach

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To the editor: The issue of vaccine line jumping should have been anticipated. Part of the rationale given by medical facilities is that the vials contain multiple doses and have a limited shelf life after opening.

As a senior over the age of 75, I am included in the next phase of distribution. Also, I am only five minutes away from a medical facility administering vaccines to the first group, and less than 15 minutes from several others. As a retiree stuck at home with current restrictions, I am always available.

In Southern California, there must be huge numbers of people in a similar situation who could be immediately contacted for vaccination as an alternative to what is happening now.

John McKinney, Cerritos

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To the editor: I’m 80 years old and have some health concerns. I don’t want to jump the line — but where is the line, and how will I know when it’s my turn?

John Ryan, Brea

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To the editor: When I heard President-elect Joe Biden announce his plan to distribute 100 million vaccine shots, inoculating 50 million people, in his first 100 days in office, I thought he was being overconfident. Now, having run the numbers, I think it is very doable.

Each state would have to vaccinate 20,000 people per day. Here in California, that is less than 350 people daily in each of the state’s 58 counties.

If doctors and nurses in local hospitals can’t administer the required number of daily shots, then neighborhood pharmacists and other organizations should be able to fill the gaps.

Why wait until Biden is inaugurated to start this mass inoculation?

Denny Freidenrich, Laguna Beach

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To the editor: Look, I know Big Brother is already here, but what rational Californian would want personal information in a vaccine registry?

Of course people are hesitant about this. We already know about the ineptitude of some state and federal agencies to monitor data carefully and to prevent hacking or fraud. Although a vaccine registry may be important, how can we trust our government with yet more personal data?

Bette Tang, Chatsworth