A new report claims that two New York City departments, including the New York City Fire Department, have filed fraudulent vaccine cards t...
A new report claims that two New York City departments, including the New York City Fire Department, have filed fraudulent vaccine cards to comply with the city’s vaccine mandate.
The FDNY and Sanitation Department are being investigated, according to the New York Post.
The Post report said blank cards appear to have been stolen from the FDNY’s Brooklyn headquarters, citing a source it did not name.
Firefighters were warned in an Oct. 30 memo that faking an “official vaccination card” for “the purpose of proving vaccination compliance” could result in a felony charge.
A source the Post called an FDNY insider said some of the stolen blank cards might have been sold, adding “There were Venmo transactions involved.”
Prior to the mandate, firefighters had opposed the mandate, saying it would lead to a reduction in strength because large numbers of firefighters would not be vaccinated.
Sanitation workers have apparently been caught faking their cards, the Post reported, saying that 50 workers have been suspended out of an estimated 150 people involved.
As the Post told it, CVS employees filed the cards saying that the sanitation workers involved — mostly from Staten Island — received the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
One glitch: CVS was not distributing the Johnson & Johnson shot, the source told the Post.
“I think what they did is extremely stupid. Either get the vaccine or accept the consequences,” the insider said.
A Department of Sanitation spokesman said it is “actively investigating” workers who submitted fake proof.
Diane Struzzi, a spokeswoman for city’s Department of Investigation, said the agency “is aware of allegations involving the issuance of bogus vaccination cards and declines further comment.”
Sanitation spokesman Joshua Goodman said, “These are very concerning allegations, and we take them very seriously — getting vaccinated is important to public health, and we do not tolerate anyone faking something that is a requirement of city employment.
“Anyone we find has submitted a fraudulent vaccination card will be suspended without pay,” he continued.
The two departments have the lowest rates of vaccination in city government.
Through Thursday, 87 percent of sanitation workers, 86 percent of firefighters and 92 percent of EMS workers were vaccinated.
New York City’s vaccine mandate required workers to either have one shot by Nov. 1 or be suspended.
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