Exclusive sites in upscale Florida communities allowed about 6,000 people to jump ahead of tens of thousands of seniors on waitlists

Florida, where demand for vaccination has exceeded supply since the state started administering it in late December, is facing statewide vaccine distribution challenges.

3 million have received vaccines

Seniors wait for Covid-19 vaccinations at a vaccination site in Manatee County, Florida.

Baugh said at a public county commissioners’ meeting that DeSantis called Rex Jensen, the CEO of the parent company of the Lakewood Ranch community, about setting up a vaccine drive — and that Jensen called her for help setting up the drive. A news release on the Manatee County website says it aimed to vaccinate 3,000 people over three days.

Jensen’s spokesperson, Lisa Barnott, told CNN their involvement in the vaccine drive was only “to help identify a site that could accommodate 1,000 people per day.”

Some residents in Manatee County said they were outraged by Baugh’s actions.

“The whole thing smacked to me of politics, favoritism, elitism and racism,” Ken Schultz, a Manatee County resident, told CNN.

Baugh apologized following intense criticism regarding the vaccination site, but said at another public county commissioners’ meeting February 18 that if presented with the opportunity again, “I will do exactly what I did this time.”

CNN asked Baugh for comment on the investigation but has not heard back.

Harvey Goldstein says the handling of vaccination sites was wrong.

It turns out, a similar clinic was arranged at a 55-and-older gated community called Kings Gate, in Charlotte County, which also invited residents of another resort-style community called Grand Palm to get vaccinated.

“When we’re delivering vaccines the mechanism has to be as fair as possible, and we can’t play favorites,” Goldstein said. “I think it was a mistake.”

Vaccines and political ties

Kings Gate and Grand Palm have something else in common.

Neal Communities spokesperson Leisa Weintraub told CNN via email that the company was not involved in the Lakewood Ranch vaccination site and said the company would have no further comment.

“Neal Communities, Southwest Florida’s premier, private homebuilder, was asked by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to assist with a community vaccination event in Charlotte County,” said the news release.

Between 2018 and 2019, Neal donated $125,000 to the Friends of Ron DeSantis PAC, according to campaign finance records. Records also show conservative donor Richard Uihlein, who has family ties to Lakewood Ranch, donated $900,000 to the PAC during that same period.

CNN reached out to Uihlein and has not heard back.

The Uihlein family has owned Schroeder-Manatee Ranch (SMR) since the early 1900s and developed Lakewood Ranch on the SMR property, according to the Lakewood Ranch website. SMR, once a working ranch, transitioned into community development in 1994. According to the website, Lakewood Ranch is the fastest selling multi-generational, master-planned community in the United States.

Call for federal probe

Democratic US Rep. Charlie Crist sent a letter to acting US Attorney General Monty Wilkinson on February 21, asking the Department of Justice to investigate DeSantis and whether the vaccine drives benefit DeSantis’ political allies and donors.

“Lakewood Ranch’s parent company is owned by one of the largest Republican donors in the country, including contributing over $900,000 to the Governor,” Crist wrote in the letter.

The congressman told CNN, “If you’re Hispanic or Black or (a) brown person, you’re not getting these pop-up vaccines that the governor is giving to people that are in more affluent, more White and more Republican parts of Florida.”

Asked for comment, a Justice Department spokesperson would not say whether it was investigating and declined further comment.

Mayor challenges governor on vaccine clinics

In a statement to CNN, the governor’s strategic initiatives director, Meredith Beatrice, said nearly half of the senior living community vaccine points of distribution in Florida have been in Broward and Palm Beach counties, “which are not known for being Republican strongholds.”

Beatrice also said the state partnered with places of worship earlier this year and with historically Black colleges and universities, Navarro and CVS y Mas pharmacy stores to help reach underserved communities.

But Carlos Hernandez, the mayor of Hialeah, a predominantly Hispanic and working-class city, said he doesn’t buy the governor’s explanation of the pop-up sites.

Hernandez crashed a news conference DeSantis hosted in his city last week, the day the governor announced the partnership with Navarro and CVS y Mas, and said he has been trying to talk to DeSantis since the pandemic started.

“Governor, the mayor of Hialeah. How are you, sir?” Hernandez shouted after DeSantis finished his news conference.

As soon as DeSantis walked out, Hernandez walked up to the governor’s lectern and said he doesn’t believe politics are not involved in the distribution of the vaccine in Florida.

“I need help for my people in the city of Hialeah. I’ve been saying that since this thing started,” Hernandez said. “It’s sad that he (DeSantis) talks about politics aren’t involved. Come on. You know what? Give me the vaccines.”