Manatee commissioner Baugh made VIP list for COVID-19 vaccines. She put herself on it
While she organized an exclusive pop-up vaccination site in Lakewood Ranch, Manatee Commissioner Vanessa Baugh created a VIP list of residents she wanted vaccinated. The list included her former neighbors; the developer of the master-planned Lakewood Ranch community; the developer’s father; and herself.
Emails show Baugh played an integral role in organizing the state-run COVID-19 vaccination site that will provide 3,000 shots for residents in two of Manatee County’s wealthiest zip codes as part of the three-day event that began Wednesday morning. Baugh instructed county staff to pull only residents who had listed the zip codes 34202 or 34211 on their registration, which required staff to manipulate a database intentionally designed only to pull names at random.
Baugh also directed Public Safety Director Jacob Saur to ensure that five people — herself, Schroeder-Manatee Ranch president and CEO Rex Jensen, his father Lawrence Jensen and her former neighbors Robert and Marie Keehn — were included among the 3,000 appointments to be made, according to emails obtained through public records requests.
In a statement emailed to the Bradenton Herald on Wednesday evening, Baugh, 67, claimed she has not been vaccinated or received an appointment. Baugh also said that she only included the Keehns because she did not see them listed in the Vaccine Standby Pool.
However, the Bradenton Herald was able to confirm that the Keehns were called to schedule an appointment and received their first doses on Wednesday morning.
In an email sent to Saur early Monday morning with the subject line “names for list,” Baugh wrote, “names for vaccination requested,” along with the five names, their addresses, dates of birth and phone numbers.
Baugh’s statement did not explain why those names were not directed to enter the Vaccine Standby Pool by visiting Vax.MyManatee.org.
When she came under fire by fellow commissioners during Tuesday’s board meeting, Baugh said, “I will tell you that personally, yes, I would help do it again anywhere in Manatee County if we could get more vaccine. To me, that is what is important here — the number of vaccines that are coming into Manatee County. Did I even stop to think that this board and others would be upset over it? No, to be honest, I thought it was a great idea.”
Baugh did not disclose during the meeting that she had obtained an appointment to receive a vaccine.
Are vaccines political?
Florida’s vaccine availability has faced scrutiny, with many questioning how Gov. Ron DeSantis has allowed the process to become a political ordeal, bypassing state agencies tasked with managing the pandemic response, and instead coordinating with politically-connected developers to bring vaccine pop-sites to their communities.
Instead of getting vaccines to seniors in communities most ravaged by the coronavirus, these exclusive events have brought vaccines to two of Manatee County’s wealthiest zip codes. Last week, DeSantis held a similar three-day event in Kings Gate, a community in Charlotte County with homes built by Bradenton developer Pat Neal.
“It wasn’t a choice about zip codes,” DeSantis insisted, before going on the defensive during a Wednesday press conference at the Premier Sports Campus site and threatening to send additional vaccine elsewhere.
“It was a choice about where’s a high concentration of seniors where you can have communities provide the ability for them to go on,” he continued. “It wasn’t choosing one zip code over another. We go where the seniors are and try to knock it out.”
Manatee County, however, already has the capacity to vaccinate 3,000 people a day at the two sites that have been set up at Tom Bennett Park in Bradenton and at the county’s Public Safety complex. The county continues to receive an allotment of 6,100 vaccines a week, with 1,000 going to MCR Health for vaccinating residents of underserved communities.
DeSantis previously highlighted Manatee’s efficiency in distributing COVID-19 vaccine during a press conference last month.
Neither Rex Jensen nor his 86-year-old father live in the chosen zip codes.
Rex Jensen also did not immediately respond for comment on Wednesday but he told the Bradenton Herald on Tuesday how he received a call from Neal last week, with DeSantis on the line, asking for help to bring the vaccine site to Lakewood Ranch.
“It’s not about a discussion of politics. It’s not a discussion about groups. It’s about getting vaccines out into the public,” Jensen said. “I am glad that the governor reached out.”
Jensen’s father declined the appointment, telling the Bradenton Herald he recently recovered from COVID-19 and was told by his doctor that he needed to wait 90 days before being vaccinated, a current standard protocol.
Colleagues blast Baugh’s move
Other members of the Board of County Commissioners said they were disgusted and disheartened by Baugh’s decision to prioritize herself and her acquaintances.
“I am very grateful for Gov. DeSantis having the pop-up clinic in Manatee County, but the problem I have is that vaccine should’ve been available to all of the people in the pool. That’s how we keep it fair and honest,” said Commissioner Misty Servia. “We all want to hug our children and our grandchildren. We all want a vaccine, but no one should receive preferential treatment.”
“For a county commissioner to sit at that meeting and listen to me say that I’ve been giving vaccines and helping at our Bennett Park clinic and (for her) to not even mention that she scheduled herself is disgusting,” said Commissioner Carol Whitmore, who also works as a nurse.
Commissioner Reggie Bellamy said he was concerned about how Baugh’s directions may undermine the community’s faith in the Vaccine Standby Pool, which is meant to function as a random lottery system. Despite suggestions to select residents randomly for appointments at the pop-up site, emails show that Baugh told staff to pull only residents from certain zip codes.
“This is unfortunate and very disheartening that our system can be compromised. Our citizens have lost trust in us,” Bellamy said. “We’re getting swarmed with emails and complaints and constituents are referring back to my comments when I asked whether the system could be compromised. Now, I’m personally embarrassed and I’m going to call those people back and apologize.”
“I believed in the system and there was no way I saw that we would have certain zip codes being pulled,” he continued. “No leaders should lead that way, especially when you’re referring to a health issue.”
Baugh’s former neighbor, Robert Keehn, confirmed that he and his wife were vaccinated on Wednesday morning, but he claimed he didn’t know it was because Baugh had given them preference.
“I did not know we got special treatment because I just felt it was my turn,” Keehn said.
According to Keehn, the couple was on the list in seven different counties, including Manatee County. They have underlying conditions and have not been able to see their family since October 2019.
Keehn, who celebrated his 73rd birthday on Tuesday, called the vaccine his birthday wish and said he had been frustrated with the county’s Vaccine Standby Pool because it chose people at random, potentially allowing someone who just registered to get called before him.
“If I was somehow selected, I will thank Vanessa,” Keehn said. “I totally disagree with the current system. I think they need to do something about it.”
The couple does business with Baugh’s jewelry store and has politically supported her, according to Keehn.
“I don’t feel bad about it because I think a lot of people are manipulating the system,” he added.
Reached for comment, Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge, a close friend of Baugh, said he was shocked and upset that her actions undermined the county’s process of vaccinating residents.
“I’ve been assuring my residents that our current lottery system is the best practice because everyone is on an equal footing that’s fair and equitable,” Van Ostenbridge said. “If we vary from that, it undermines people’s faith in the system.”
This story was originally published February 17, 2021 at 4:30 PM with the headline "Manatee commissioner Baugh made VIP list for COVID-19 vaccines. She put herself on it."
