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Detained immigrants continue to lack full access to COVID-19 vaccines and boosters, survey shows [1]
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Date: 2022-09-21
Freedom for Migrants said it collected responses from nearly 100 detained individuals this past spring, and found that 30% of respondents reported one or more issues around accessing a dose. “Of the respondents who wanted a vaccine, 7% of respondents were denied a vaccine,” the survey said. “Of the respondents who wanted a booster, 17% did not receive a booster shot.”
Freedom for Migrants also collected stories from detained people, who expressed fear about contracting the virus in detention. One report in late 2020 revealed how ICE’s refusal to allow immigrants to shelter in their own homes added over 245,000 COVID-19 cases throughout the country.
“I have asthma and my BMI is over 25, which makes me vulnerable to COVID. I have not received a booster shot,” one person detained at the Eloy Federal Contract Facility in Arizona told Freedom for Migrants. They said they were offered the Johnson & Johnson dose last year, but have heard nothing about a booster, nor is there any information about a booster posted anywhere.
Medical experts have previously said that “ICE’s heavy reliance on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, increases the importance of booster doses, particularly mRNA vaccines, for people in its custody.”
The detained person also said that this past January, “someone in the facility had asked for a booster, but they said ‘they were not being offered at the time.’” That same month, ICE was slapped with a lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union for failing to provide boosters to eligible migrants. The complaint stated that plaintiffs “requested booster shots, only to be told that none are available, or that they should wait an indeterminate time, or their requests have been simply ignored.”
“These findings reinforce the degree to which individuals in detention are harmed when placed in a system that removes bodily autonomy, leading to rampant human rights abuses,” Freedom for Migrants said. The organization in its recommendations said comprehensive access must include vaccine/booster options, clear instructions on how to obtain a dose, and adequate access to this information, including in multiple languages.
But again, the safest option is to let immigrants pursue their cases from their own communities and homes. The vast majority of people in ICE custody have no criminal record at all. “As public health experts have repeated throughout the pandemic, it is critical for ICE to use its discretion to release all detained individuals that it has discretion to release, starting with those who are considered high-risk for COVID-19,” Freedom for Migrants said.
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https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/9/21/2124329/-Detained-immigrants-continue-to-lack-full-access-to-COVID-19-vaccines-and-boosters-survey-shows
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