FL Women Pose As Grannies To Cut To Front Of Vaccine Line: DOH

ORANGE COUNTY, FL — Two women posed as “grannies” in Orange County, Florida, Wednesday to receive the coronavirus vaccine early, Dr. Raul Pino, director of the Florida Department of Health in Orange County said during a press conference Thursday.

“We realized a couple of young ladies came dressed up as grannies to get vaccinated for the second time,” he said. “So, I don’t know how they escaped the first time, but they came (to get) vaccinated (wearing) the bonnets, the gloves, the glasses, the whole thing and they probably were in their twenties.”

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office was called to the Orange County Convention Center, a COVID-19 vaccination site, around 10:20 a.m. on Wednesday to issue trespass warnings to the women, Olga Monroy-Ramirez, 44, and Martha Vivian Monroy, 34, Kent Donahue, public information officer for the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, told Patch in an email.

Their birth dates didn’t match the dates they used to register for their vaccine appointments, though their names matched, Donahue said.

“We don’t have any further information about this incident. And we don’t have any information about whether they were wearing disguises or how they were dressed,” he said.

As Florida moves through its first phase of vaccinations, the state continues to target three communities: frontline health care workers with direct patient contact, residents and staff in long-term care facilities, and individuals who are 65 and older. Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order prioritizing these groups in December.