Doctors wanting to give migrants flu vaccines arrested during protest
BY LIBERTYZABALA
FOX5
CHULA VISTA, Calif. — Six protesters, including at least two doctors, were arrested Tuesday outside of a Border Patrol facility in Chula Vista as they demanded agents allow them to give migrants flu shots.
The physicians said they wouldn’t leave until agents let them into the facilities to administer free flu shots to migrants. Some of them laid in the streets until agents removed them. Protesters chanted, “no shame!” and “no more flu deaths!” as agents arrested them.
A group called Doctors For Camp Closures are demanding agents let them give free flu shots to migrants. They say it’s in response to the death of a 16-year-old Guatemalan boy in U.S. Customs and Border Protection custody.
CBP says it has never been a practice to administer vaccines, and the policy is not new.
Danielle Deinas with Doctors for Camp Closures said she met with agents and the sector chief to once again request they let doctors in.
“Gave us the same kind of excuses that we’ve been hearing all along about feasibility and policy really being their barriers but they wanted to express they did care about this issue … as much as I would love to believe that they were sincere I really won’t know that until they do something tangible,” Deinas said.