‘Bullying’ shut down COVID vaccination event, Georgia health department head says
Gov. Brian Kemp and health department commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey encouraged Georgians to consult medical professionals about vaccinations during a press conference Monday afternoon.
About 43% of Georgians are fully vaccinated, and 50% have received at least one shot. But COVID vaccinations remain a controversial topic, and Toomey took time during the press conference to share that vaccination teams have been harassed during events.
“I’ve become aware that many of our workers who are doing these vaccinations are receiving threats, hostile emails, harassing emails,” she said. “That shouldn’t happen to nurses who are working in the field to try and keep our state safe. I heard one mobile event had to close down because of the bullying and threats that were directed to our team.
“This is wrong, this is absolutely wrong. These people are giving their lives to help others, we should be thanking them for trying to get life-saving vaccines to our state.”
Kemp has committed to sending more than 2,500 National Guard personnel to assist overwhelmed hospitals across the state. He previously had announced about 100 guardsmen were going to deploy.
“Vaccination remains our most effective tool against COVID-19,” Kemp said “and I continue encourage all Georgians who have not done so yet to talk to a medical profession about getting vaccinated.”
Georgia is experiencing a fourth wave of COVID-19 cases due to the highly contagious delta variant, which is infecting children and young people at higher rates than previous variants and has led to crowded emergency room and ICU’s across the state.
