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- This week, Florida announced it will be holding a vaccination clinic in Manatee County.
- Critics noted that the clinic would only serve residents of two zip codes who tend to be wealthy and Republicans.
- “If Manatee County doesn’t like us doing this, we are very much in favor of putting this in counties that want it,” DeSantis said Wednesday.
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When Florida announced its intention this week to distribute COVID-19 vaccines in Manatee County, critics – including local Republicans – were quick to point out that it would bypass the state’s lottery system. and would only serve some of the wealthiest, whitest, and most conservative residents.
Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis fired back on Wednesday, saying the county could take him or leave him.
“If Manatee County doesn’t like us doing this, we are very much in favor of placing this in counties that want it and we are totally happy to do so,” DeSantis said, according to the Sarasota Herald -Tribune.
Florida Democrats were quick to pounce.
“Threatening retaliation and less vaccine access for communities who criticize the vaccine rollout for its problems is shameful and inhumane,” Florida Democratic Party Chairman Manny Diaz said in a statement, accusing DeSantis of gambling favorites”.
But the division over the distribution of vaccines by the state is not strictly partisan.
On Tuesday, a scuffle erupted between Manatee County Commissioners over the governor’s plan to hold a three-day clinic in the planned community of Lakewood Ranch in southwest Florida, the local affiliate reported. from CBS, WTSP.
The governor himself contacted the community developer to set up the clinic, according to the Tampa Bay Times. But Commissioner Vanessa Baugh said her idea was to limit the distribution of 3,000 vaccines to residents of two particular zip codes – those who, compared to others in the county, have been spared the worst of the pandemic.
One of the Republicans to push back was Commissioner Misty Servia. “It compromises our system. It puts people against each other,” she said. In particular, Serbia said it contributes to the idea that Manatee County has “a problem of racism”, noting that the zip codes chosen represent “the whitest, wealthiest demographic in Manatee County, and placing them in front of everyone “.
The social justice of vaccine distribution is not a conversation limited to Florida. Although black Americans account for 12.2% of all coronavirus cases and 14.9% of all deaths, only 6.2% have received a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States.
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