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March 11, 2021. It was to be a turning point in the coronavirus pandemic for Erin Tokley, longtime Philadelphia police officer, Baptist minister and father of three, 47 years old. It was supposed to be the day of his immunization appointment.
Rather, it was the date of his funeral.
Tokley – “Toke” to friends and family – died on March 3, becoming the Philadelphia Police Department’s sixth confirmed COVID-19 death.
Philadelphia officers first became eligible for their shots in late January and Tokley was eager to get it as soon as he could. But he fell ill in early February, before it was his turn to roll up his sleeve.
The resurgence of COVID-19 this summer and the national debate over vaccine requirements have created a difficult situation for the country’s first responders, who are dying in greater numbers but pushing back warrants.
It’s a heartbreaking situation for Tokley’s widow Octavia as they approach the 21st anniversary of their first date on September 10. She said she got over her anger at the other police officers who refused the vaccine and was now disappointed. Her husband’s life could not be saved, but theirs still can.
“I don’t want to have to be there to support your family for this,” she said. “No one deserves this, especially when it can be avoided.”
Her husband is one of 132 law enforcement personnel who died from COVID-19 in 2021 on Monday, according to Officer Down Memorial Page. In Florida alone last month, six people affiliated with law enforcement died over a 10-day period.
In the first half of 2021, 71 law enforcement officials in the United States died from the virus – a slight decrease from the 76 who died during the same period in 2020, according to data compiled by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund. Last year the total figure was 241 – making the virus the leading cause of death in the line of duty.
Despite the deaths, police and other first responders are among the most hesitant to get vaccinated and their cases continue to grow. No national statistic shows the vaccination rate for the entire U.S. population of first responders, but individual police and fire departments across the country report numbers well below the national rate of 74% of adults who have. received at least one dose.
Frustrated city leaders are promulgating warrants for their city workers – including police and firefighters – as the delta variant rises. The consequences of terms range from weekly testing to suspension to termination. This is a stark contrast from the start of vaccine rollout when first responders were prioritized for injections.
“It makes me sad that they don’t see this as another security measure,” Octavia Tokley said. “You wear masks, you wear bulletproof vests. You protect each other. This is what you do, you protect and serve yourself.
At nearly 3,000 miles (4,828 kilometers), San Francisco firefighter Christopher Salas offers his condolences to the Tokley family. “I feel for her, I feel for her husband,” he said.
Salas, 58, has worked for almost 28 years, 21 of them in the difficult Tender district of the city. He wears a mask, washes his hands and disinfects himself. But he fails to get the shot – and plans to retire earlier instead of acquiescing to the city’s ultimatum to get the shot or get laid off.
“I am not an anti-vaccine,” he said. “I have all of my other vaccines. I just don’t take this one.
He envisioned it, just so he could end his career with three decades of service. But after praying about it with his wife, he remains concerned about the vaccine’s effectiveness and side effects.
“I don’t think I would be comfortable with myself if I did something that went against my belief,” he said of the vaccination. “It’s about freedom and having your own choice to be your own person.”
Public health professionals and elected officials, however, argue it’s bigger than that.
Dr Jennifer Bryan, family physician and board member of the Mississippi State Medical Association, says she’s working to change her mind about a half-hour appointment both in a state with one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country. Along with first responders, she reminds them that they can also become patients.
“It’s more difficult when you want to protect those who are on the front lines,” she said. “When you share the air with someone, there is a risk. If you share more air with sick people and your work is more public oriented, then you are in danger. “
“This vaccine isn’t just about protecting you, it’s about protecting your coworkers, your community, the people who attend your church, the people who attend your children’s school,” said Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan, whose the city requires all employees to be fully immunized by October. 18 or in the face of termination.
Unions across the country are fighting back. Shon Buford, president of San Francisco Fire Department Local 798, is urging city leaders to delay their October 13 vaccination or termination date.
Twenty workers who have not disclosed whether they received an injection by the deadline may receive 10-day unpaid suspensions. A firefighter sued San Francisco, which was the first major U.S. city to adopt a vaccination mandate for its workers. The overwhelming majority of the city’s 36,000 employees are vaccinated, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Buford, who is vaccinated, says he needs more time to educate his hesitant limbs, and he’s disappointed that San Francisco took such a tough stance early on. Firefighters like Salas have threatened to retire, and others say they risk being made redundant.
“For me, they deserve more than an ultimatum,” Buford said.
In Los Angeles, more than 3,000 police department workers have been infected with the virus and the numbers continue to rise. Ten LAPD workers died, along with three spouses.
The Los Angeles Police Protective League, the union that represents rank and file officers, proposed mandatory weekly tests for cops – like the New York City Police Department – instead of the warrant signed by Mayor Eric Garcetti on August 20 which makes vaccinations part of the working conditions of city workers.
LAPD chief Michel Moore said 51% of the department had been vaccinated as of Aug.31 and more than 100 staff had been vaccinated in the past week and a half.
In California state prisons, a federal judge could order all inmate corrections employees and firefighters to get vaccinated in a class action lawsuit. As of mid-July, 41% of the state’s correctional officers had at least one dose of the vaccine, compared to 75% of inmates.
Authorities fear a repeat of last summer’s outbreak at San Quentin State Prison north of San Francisco, which sickened 75% of the prison population. Twenty-nine people, including a correctional officer, died.
“Every minute, every day, every week that we delay puts our clients at greater and greater risk,” said Rita Lomio, lawyer with the nonprofit Prison Law Office, which represents incarcerated people. state in the lawsuit.
Octavia Tokley, the 41-year-old widow from Philadelphia, received her first dose just three days after her husband died, collapsing into the arms of a grieving stranger as they stood in line. Her 5-year-old daughter, Amethyst, constantly asks why her father hasn’t had one either.
He tried, his mother said, but it was not yet ready for him.
Each night, their child has difficulty falling asleep.
“I miss daddy, I miss daddy,” she cries. “I feel so lonely, I miss dad.”
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Associated Press Writer Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia contributed.
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