A KY Catholic School Shoved Hundreds of Non-Essential People on the Vaccine List

While the vaccine rollout occurs, it’s limited in most places to health care personnel, the elderly, and those who care for them. Closely after that, it will open up to educators who work with students.

But in Kentucky, where educators are currently eligible for the vaccine, something bizarre happened. Holy Trinity Catholic School near Louisville — a small school with only 50 staffers — told health officials there were more than 300 people associated with them who needed their shots.

Obviously not all of them are teachers who have daily interaction with students.

Joseph Gerth of the Louisville Courier Journal explains:

They were coaches and school volunteers and their spouses, and whoever, showing up to get jabbed.

When the health department found out what was going on, it contacted the archdiocese and put an end to it.

“They apparently believed, incorrectly, that they could include anyone who had contact with students, like volunteers,” said Kathy Turner, a spokeswoman for the health department.

The school says it was an honest mistake. They (wrongly) assumed anyone who has any contact with students in any capacity could use the “educator” option as a way to get in line for the vaccine. That’s obviously not true.

Maybe that was an honest mistake. But I find it very hard to believe every single person who cut in line via the school had no idea they weren’t actually eligible. No one blew the whistle?

It didn’t take long for the local health department to figure out what was happening and put a stop to it, but what does it say about the Catholic school — Catholics in general — when so many people were this willing to obviously cheat the system?

We all want vaccines. But pretending you’re more “essential” than people who seriously need it isn’t just a mistake; it very well could put someone else’s life in jeopardy.

(Image via Shutterstock. Thanks to @McNabbScience for the link)