A 24-year-old Georgian refused a vaccine. He needed a lung transplant because of COVID-19, and his mother is begging people to get vaccinated.

• A man who refused a coronavirus vaccine was infected and needed a lung transplant, his mother said.

• Blake Bargatze, 24, has been hospitalized since April and underwent a double lung transplant in June.

• Her mother urged people to get vaccinated, saying “I just don’t want anyone else to go through this.”

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A man in Georgia needed a double lung transplant after refusing a coronavirus vaccine and then being infected.

Her suffering prompted her mother to urge others in her position to get vaccinated.

Blake Bargatze, 24, has been hospitalized since April, NBC News reported.

His mother, Cheryl Bargatze Nuclo, told NBC affiliate WXIA that he was hesitant to get the vaccine before attending an indoor concert in Florida, where he was likely infected.

She said he wanted to wait a lot longer before getting the shot: “He wanted to wait until he was out for about 10 years, much like a large part of the population wants him out for longer.”

Georgia and neighboring southern states are among the least vaccinated in the United States, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

His son’s condition worsened in the hospital and he had difficulty breathing to the point of requiring a double lung transplant. He received the transplant in June, NBC News reported, and received a COVID-19 vaccine days before his operation.

WXIA released videos of Bargatze being hospitalized with tubes through his nose and using a machine to stand. At one point, he seemed to say the words “get vaccinated”.

“I just don’t want anyone else to go through this,” said Bargatze Nuclo. “It’s horrible. It’s not worth all the pain this is going to cause you and your family.”

She said Bargatze’s brother and a cousin were vaccinated after seeing what happened to him.

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