Dems: Ease vaccine requirements for undocumented immigrants

Florida should loosen residency requirements that have made it difficult for the state’s nearly 1 million undocumented immigrants and seasonal farmworkers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, four Democratic members of Congress wrote to Gov. Ron DeSantis Wednesday.

The request, which was led by U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, cites a growing disparity in the state’s vaccination effort with reports of undocumented residents being turned away.

The lawmakers asked for targeted vaccine sites for immigrant communities and more flexibility in documentation requirements.

“Keeping all Floridians safe in this pandemic means knocking down vaccination roadblocks for our most vulnerable residents,” Wasserman Schultz said in a prepared statement.

U.S. Reps. Ted Deutch, Lois Frankel and Darren Soto also signed the letter.

Concerns about vaccine tourism — including reports of wealthy international travelers getting shots in Florida — prompted the state to issue residency requirements on Jan. 21 to receive the COVID-19 shot.

Residents must show a drivers license or state ID card. Seasonal residents can provide two documents showing they live in Florida, which can include a mortgage statement or lease; utility bill or utility hookup statement; mail from a financial institution; mail from a governmental agency; or proof of residency from a parent, stepparent or guardian.

In an email, Cody McCloud, a DeSantis spokesman, wrote the state’s requirements are not overly burdensome because a variety of documents can be shown as proof of residency.

“It is not surprising that politicians in Washington continue frivolous attempts to politicize Florida’s successful vaccine rollout while unnecessarily creating division among Floridians they are elected to serve,” McCloud wrote.

The letter from Democrats acknowledges concerns about vaccine tourism, but lawmakers wrote it is essential to ensure immigrant communities have access now the vaccine is in greater supply. Undocumented immigrants can find it difficult to collect the necessary documents that are often contingent on having state ID, the lawmakers wrote.

“If we ignore gaps in access to the vaccine or impose barriers that make those gaps worse, then we are only jeopardizing peoples’ lives and weakening our efforts to end this pandemic and rebuild our economy,” Deutch said in a prepared statement.

The lawmakers also wrote to Alejandro Mayorkas, secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and Xavier Becerra, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, asking for proof of residency to be waived entirely at federally run vaccine sites.

Signs posted at federal vaccine sites in Florida have assured undocumented immigrants that

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will not conduct operations at or near vaccine distribution sites or clinics.

As of Tuesday, more than 4.5 million people had been fully vaccinated in Florida.