Two Women Dress Up As Senior Citizens To Try And Get Covid-19 Vaccine

Dr Raul Pino, from the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, said the pair were busted when they tried to get their second shot on Wednesday, adding that it was not known how they managed to get their first dose.

Pino said: "They did have a valid CDC card, vaccination card, there was some issues with their IDs and driver's licence."

He explained that the women were about to receive the vaccine when they were stopped, after vaccinators noticed that they 'looked funny'.

Deputies were called in, with the Orange County Sheriff's Office saying the women had 'dates of birth that did not match those they had used to register for the vaccines'.

The names, however, did match the registration.

Pino continued: "Part of the findings that we have to do is were they really vaccinated by us, when [they were] vaccinated, what happened, what date, what time - to try to figure out if there are any holes, loopholes, in the process that are allowing people to do that."

As the two women weren't old enough, if they had entered their correct dates of birth when registering for an appointment, they would have been blocked by the system.

However, Pino said they could have used fake information or received help from someone who works at the site.

He said: "People get really, really apprehensive about getting the vaccine, 'I want it now'. And some people get really emotional. So I also can see that someone had said, 'OK, we don't have that many people, yeah, go by'. So anything could have happened."

Pino urged people to be patient with the process to allow the most vulnerable to receive the vaccine first.

He admitted the incident was 'kind of hilarious to a sense', but that ultimately it was 'disappointing' as the women were taking the place of someone 'in much higher need'.

Pino said that security has been increased at the site - where about 2,500 jabs are administered per day to those aged 65 and over, and to health care workers - with reports of nurses being approached as they're leaving their shift by strangers asking if there are any spare shots going.

Pino added: "We have seen an increase in weird things happening and people walking in suspicious, people monitoring the site. So that's why we requested additional security that was provided and we installed cameras and other security features in the vaccine room."