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Man caught getting eighth Covid-19 booster vaccine at Johnsonville mall
Ben Strang10:26, Feb 11 2022
Nam Y Huh/AP
The man claims he is receiving $200 per booster dose received.
Nurses at a Wellington Covid-19 vaccination clinic caught a man attempting to get his eighth booster shot on Wednesday afternoon.
The man was receiving boosters for cash, earning $200 a pop.
Capital and Coast District Health Board and the Ministry of Health are aware of the case, and said the police were investigating.
In a statement, Ministry of Health spokeswoman Cathie Bell said the man has put himself, and those whose doses he was receiving, at risk.
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“To assume another person's identity and receive a medical treatment is dangerous,” she said.
”This puts at risk the person who receives a vaccination under an assumed identity, and the person whose health record will show they have been vaccinated when they have not.
“If a person was to receive a vaccination under an assumed identity, their own personal health record would not reflect that they were vaccinated. This could affect how their health is managed in the future.”
Police have been approached for comment. But so far, police have been unable to provide answers to questions about the case.
The man tried to receive his eighth booster at the Johnsonville Mall vaccine centre.
He was only caught because he talked about his enterprise on the phone, and was overheard by both staff and other people being vaccinated.
It’s not the first time someone has been caught taking multiple vaccines in the name of others, with a Ministry of Health investigation launched when a man received up to 10 vaccines in one day.
Police have been warned about the practice, and academics warned it could become an issue because no identification is needed before someone is vaccinated.