HHS tells Florida it won’t change vaccine allocation to account for snowbirds

The Department of Health and Human Services declined to change the allocation of COVID-19 vaccines to account for the thousands of seasonal residents who move to Florida during the winter months after a majority of the state’s members of Congress asked it to do so in January.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s office received a letter from the HHS assistant secretary for preparedness and response, Robert Kadlec, on Monday after Rubio and 17 of the state’s 27 U.S. House members, including Republicans and Democrats, said the influx of “snowbirds” strained the supply of vaccines, which are available to both residents and non-residents who move to Florida for the winter.

HHS said it isn’t changing the allocation of vaccines after Florida lawmakers asked for more doses to account for an increase of seasonal residents who are eligible for a shot.

Operation Warp Speed’s “vaccine allocation was determined pro-rata, based on each jurisdiction’s population,” wrote Kadlec in a letter shared with the Miami Herald. “We encourage state and local officials with populations who travel from across the country to coordinate their distribution plans.”

In response, Rubio said HHS’ decision was “ridiculous” and said the agency’s suggestion that Florida should try to take vaccines away from other states to account for snowbirds is “stupid.”

“The Department of Health and Human Services’ response to my request for additional vaccines to account for Florida’s seasonal residents is ridiculous,” Rubio said in a statement to the Miami Herald. “The expectation that our state should try to snatch vaccines from other states is stupid and only serves to punish Florida. The administration should recognize the seasonal population and increase vaccines for Florida.”

Kadlec’s letter was dated Jan. 19, a week after the members of Congress requested the allocation change. But Rubio’s office said the letter was not received until Monday, because it was physically sent in the mail. In addition to Postal Service delivery problems around the country, physical mail sent to members of Congress is sent to an off-site facility for security screening, a process that can take weeks.

“In order for an effective level of vaccinations to occur in a timely and equitable manner, federal allocation allotments to states must ensure they account for all populations residing in a state, not just those that are residents,” wrote the group of 18 members of Congress from Florida in January, including Miami Republican Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, Maria Elvira Salazar and Carlos Gimenez. Broward Democratic Rep. Ted Deutch and Central Florida Democratic Rep. Stephanie Murphy, who is considering a 2022 U.S. Senate run against Rubio, also signed the letter.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and the Florida Department of Health, 4.7 million doses have been administered through Feb. 28, and 15% of the population has received at least one dose, a percentage identical to the national average. Florida has used about 80% of the vaccines sent to the state from the federal government, just above the national average of 78%.

Florida has one of the largest senior populations in the country — about 4.3 million residents age 65 or older — but that number does not include seasonal snowbirds who claim residency in other states or countries. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has said he supports vaccinations for snowbirds who relocate to the state for months at a time but that he does not encourage tourists, notably international “vaccine tourists” from Canada and Latin America, who come to Florida for the purpose of getting a shot.

Snowbirds and vaccine tourists aren’t included when the federal government decides how many vaccines to distribute to each state.

On Monday, DeSantis announced three new categories of Floridians eligible for vaccines: law enforcement officers, firefighters and K-12 school personnel over the age of 50. On Friday, DeSantis announced that doctor’s offices and pharmacies could begin administering vaccines to people who are “extremely vulnerable” to complications from the coronavirus. Previously, only hospitals could administer vaccines to people under 65 with certain medical conditions.