February 17, 2021 Share
Rigoberto Montesinos, a veteran of the Bay of Pigs invasion in Cuba, was so worried about side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine that he initially wasn’t going to get it, relenting only when two friends died from the disease.
But when he finally decided to get the shot, the 82-year-old couldn’t find doses where he lives in Hialeah, a Miami suburb that’s about 95% Latino. He got an appointment in nearby Miami Beach, but it was canceled. After struggling for weeks, Montesinos got his first dose last week.
“At my age, and with the virus spiking, I can’t be putting myself at risk,” said Montesinos, a Cuban exile who helped try to overthrow Fidel Castro in 1961.
Gisela Salomon, Claudia Torrens And Anita Snow
Registered Nurse Rita Alba, right, gives Gustavo Hernandez the first dose of coronavirus vaccine at a pop-up COVID-19 vaccination site at the Bronx River Addition NYCHA complex, Sunday, Jan. 31, 2021, in the Bronx borough of New York. From elderly Cuban Americans in Florida to farmworkers in California, Latinos face daunting barriers like fear, language and a lack of education and access as the COVID-19 vaccines roll out, creating risks for public health as the virus mutates and spreads. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) February 16, 2021 - 9:54 AM
HIALEAH, Fla. - Rigoberto Montesinos, a veteran of the Bay of Pigs invasion in Cuba, was so worried about side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine that he initially wasn t going to get it, relenting only when two friends died from the disease.
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Dr. Ingrid Felix-Peralta, second from left, and her husband Dr. Victor Peralta, second from right, administer second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in New York, Friday, Feb. 5, 2021. From elderly Cuban Americans in Florida to farmworkers in California, Latinos face daunting barriers like fear, language and a lack of education and access as the COVID-19 vaccines roll out, creating risks for public health as the virus mutates and spreads. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) Credit: The Associated Press
HIALEAH, Fla. (AP) Rigoberto Montesinos, a veteran of the Bay of Pigs invasion in Cuba, was so worried about side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine that he initially wasn t going to get it, relenting only when two friends died from the disease.
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