Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Bill Moyers, Broadcaster and LBJ’s White House Press Secretary, Dies at 91

17 hours ago

State Department Approves $30 Million for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

18 hours ago

S&P 500, Nasdaq Near Record Highs as Rate-Cut Bets Creep Up

23 hours ago

Bobby Sherman, Easygoing Teen Idol of the 1960s and ’70s, Dies at 81

23 hours ago

Cargo Ship That Caught Fire Carrying Electric Vehicles Sinks in the Pacific

23 hours ago

US Supreme Court Backs South Carolina Effort to Defund Planned Parenthood

24 hours ago

4 Million Acres of California Forests Could Lose Protection. What Trump’s ‘Roadless Rule’ Repeal Could Do

2 days ago

West Nile Virus Detected in Mosquitoes in Fresno County

2 days ago

Fresno Residents Join Nationwide Fast to Call Attention to Gaza Crisis

2 days ago

Suspect in Bombing at California Fertility Clinic Dies in Federal Custody

3 days ago
Wealthy Latin Americans Flock to US in Search of Vaccines
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
April 21, 2021

Share

MONTERREY, Mexico — They travel thousands of miles by plane from Latin America to the U.S., in some places taking a shuttle directly from the airport to COVID-19 vaccine sites. Their ranks include politicians, TV personalities, business executives and a soccer team.

People of means from Latin America are chartering planes, booking commercial flights, buying bus tickets and renting cars to get the vaccine in the United States due to lack of supply at home.

Not Enough Vaccinations to go Around

Virginia Gónzalez and her husband flew from Mexico to Texas and then boarded a bus to a vaccination site. They made the trip again for a second dose. The couple from Monterrey, Mexico, acted on the advice of the doctor treating the husband for prostate cancer. In all, they logged 1,400 miles (2,200 kilometers) for two round trips.

“It’s a matter of survival,” Gónzalez said of getting a COVID-19 vaccine in the United States. “In Mexico, officials didn’t buy enough vaccines. It’s like they don’t care about their citizens.”

With a population of nearly 130 million people, Mexico has secured more vaccines than many Latin American nations — about 18 million doses as of Monday from the U.S., China, Russia and India. Most of those have been given to health care workers, people over 60 and some teachers, who so far are the only ones eligible. Most other Latin American countries, except for Chile, are in the same situation or worse.

Vaccine Seekers Willing to Pay the Price

So vaccine seekers who can afford to travel are coming to the United States to avoid the long wait, including people from as far as Paraguay. Those who make the trip must obtain a tourist visa and have enough money to pay for required coronavirus tests, plane tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars and other expenses.

In Mexico, business is booming for chartered flights to Texas.

Gónzalez and her husband were inoculated in Edinburg, Texas, a city about 160 miles (254 kilometers) from their home. But with land entry points closed to nonessential travel, the couple decided to take a commercial flight to Houston and then travel by bus.

Earlier this month, 19 players with Monterrey’s professional soccer team known as Rayados flew to Dallas to get the vaccine, local media reported. In Peru, Hernando De Soto, an economist running for president, faced a backlash after he admitted he traveled to the U.S. to get vaccinated.

Television personalities have posted on social media about their trips, attracting the scorn of many viewers who accused them of flaunting their privilege. Juan José Origel, a Mexican television host, tweeted a photo of himself receiving the shot in January in Miami. Argentinian TV personality Yanina Latorre also traveled to Miami for her elderly mother to receive a vaccine and posted a video to Instagram. Shortly after, Florida officials began requiring proof of residency for those seeking a vaccine.

But about half of U.S. states, including Texas, Arizona, and California, have no such requirement and will accept any official form of identification with a photograph.

Many Receive Assistance from Connections in the U.S.

Many of those traveling have friends or relatives who live in the U.S. and can help them navigate the appointments system or seek a leftover shot. Some have second homes in the U.S., but others borrow a U.S. address. Some said they have read that many Americans do not plan to get vaccinated.

Alejandra, a dentist who also lives in Monterrey, said she decided to seek a vaccine in the U.S. shortly after losing her mother to COVID-19 in February. She registered online at a CVS pharmacy in Texas by using the address of a friend who lives there.

This past weekend, she flew to Houston and on Monday drove to receive her second Moderna shot in Pasadena, Texas. She asked that her full name not be published because she is afraid of retribution after seeing reports that those who traveled to get vaccines in the U.S. could lose their visas.

Alejandra said she felt a sense of calm after receiving the booster shot and thought of her mom.

‘Seeking the Common Good of Society’

“What would have been if only my mom had had the opportunity to get the vaccine in the U.S.,” she said.

She knows there is criticism that foreigners like her are taking advantage of American taxpayers by getting inoculated in the United States, but she said she is trying to protect herself and her family.

“The pharmacies are saying that it doesn’t matter if you don’t have documents … and they are saying it because they are seeking the common good of society,” she said.

Chris Van Deusen, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Health Services, said the vaccine in Texas is “intended for people who live in, work in or spend a significant amount of time in Texas,” and that more than 99% of people vaccinated were state residents.

Wealthy countries around the globe have been able to acquire the largest vaccine supplies, including the U.S., which has been criticized for not doing more to help poorer countries.

Inequality of the Distribution of Vaccines Worldwide

Inequality fuels vaccine tourism, said Ernesto Ortiz, senior manager of programs at Duke University’s Global Health Innovation Center, in North Carolina, which keeps track of distribution of coronavirus vaccines worldwide. In Peru, for instance, only 2% of the country’s 32 million people have received a dose.

“I don’t blame them at all, they are desperate,” the Peruvian-American scientist said in an email.

Geovanny Vazquez said he and a friend plan to take a commercial flight on May 3 from Guatemala City to Dallas, where another friend offered to help them find a coronavirus shot.

They were seeking the immunization to feel safe while working in their home country, where they manage apartment buildings that they rent out to visitors, Vazquez said.

He said he can spend up to 20 days in the United States to try to get a shot. If he cannot get inoculated in Texas, he plans travel to other states such as Louisiana or Arizona.

If he were to get infected with COVID-19, Vazquez is confident that he would recover. “But I also work with people, and that is the main reason why I would like to seek the chance” to get the vaccine in the U.S., he said.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Fourth of July Celebrations Begin Saturday. Here’s Your Fresno Area Guide

DON'T MISS

Hawaiian Airlines Hit by Cyber Attack

DON'T MISS

US House Committee Subpoenas Harvard Over Tuition Costs

DON'T MISS

Convicted Felon Caught With Guns, Ammunition in Fresno Bust

DON'T MISS

Fresno Advocates Want Respect for Immigrants, Defend Miguel Arias

DON'T MISS

Crypto Industry Moves Into US Housing Market

DON'T MISS

Bill Moyers, Broadcaster and LBJ’s White House Press Secretary, Dies at 91

DON'T MISS

Trump Says a Deal Related to Trade Was Signed With China on Wednesday

DON'T MISS

Clovis Police Searching for At-Risk Missing Man Last Seen in Fresno

DON'T MISS

State Department Approves $30 Million for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

UP NEXT

Trump Says a Deal Related to Trade Was Signed With China on Wednesday

UP NEXT

State Department Approves $30 Million for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

UP NEXT

No Known Intelligence That Iran Moved Uranium, US Defense Chief Says

UP NEXT

Israel Says Iran’s Supreme Leader Avoided Assassination by Going Underground

UP NEXT

Tesla Executive, Elon Musk Confidant Leaves EV Maker, Bloomberg News Reports

UP NEXT

Cargo Ship That Caught Fire Carrying Electric Vehicles Sinks in the Pacific

UP NEXT

How the United States Helped Create Iran’s Nuclear Program

UP NEXT

Israel Halts Aid Into Gaza, Official Says, Clans Deny Hamas Is Stealing It

UP NEXT

Israeli Settlers Raid West Bank Town, Troops Kill 3 Palestinians

UP NEXT

Trump Says Netanyahu’s Trial Should Be Canceled

Convicted Felon Caught With Guns, Ammunition in Fresno Bust

16 hours ago

Fresno Advocates Want Respect for Immigrants, Defend Miguel Arias

16 hours ago

Crypto Industry Moves Into US Housing Market

16 hours ago

Bill Moyers, Broadcaster and LBJ’s White House Press Secretary, Dies at 91

17 hours ago

Trump Says a Deal Related to Trade Was Signed With China on Wednesday

18 hours ago

Clovis Police Searching for At-Risk Missing Man Last Seen in Fresno

18 hours ago

State Department Approves $30 Million for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

18 hours ago

Wonderdog Still Barking: Justin Wilson Thrives With Boston Red Sox

19 hours ago

Anna Wintour to Step Down From Vogue Editor-in-Chief Role, Media Reports Say

19 hours ago

Feds Charge Bullard High Teacher With Child Porn, Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

19 hours ago

Fourth of July Celebrations Begin Saturday. Here’s Your Fresno Area Guide

Independence Day is right around the corner and people are ready to celebrate! GV Wire compiled a list of Fourth of July events happening in...

16 minutes ago

16 minutes ago

Fourth of July Celebrations Begin Saturday. Here’s Your Fresno Area Guide

Hawaiian Airlines airplanes on the runway at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. April 28, 2020.
15 hours ago

Hawaiian Airlines Hit by Cyber Attack

A view of Harvard campus on John F. Kennedy Street at Harvard University is pictured in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., December 7, 2023. (Reuters File)
15 hours ago

US House Committee Subpoenas Harvard Over Tuition Costs

A convicted felon was arrested in Fresno County after investigators found a rifle, handgun, and ammunition while serving a search warrant. (Fresno PD)
16 hours ago

Convicted Felon Caught With Guns, Ammunition in Fresno Bust

16 hours ago

Fresno Advocates Want Respect for Immigrants, Defend Miguel Arias

American_Flag_Bitcoin_1280x720
16 hours ago

Crypto Industry Moves Into US Housing Market

Journalist Bill Moyers delivers the keynote speech at the People for the American Way Foundation's Spirit of Liberty dinner in Beverly Hills September 21, 2004. (Reuters File)
17 hours ago

Bill Moyers, Broadcaster and LBJ’s White House Press Secretary, Dies at 91

President Donald Trump speaks during a "One Big Beautiful" event at the White House in Washington, DC., U.S., June 26, 2025. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)
18 hours ago

Trump Says a Deal Related to Trade Was Signed With China on Wednesday

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend