FORT LAUDEDALE, Fla. – Claes Bell repeatedly called his doctor, leaving multiple messages and emails, desperate to get him to sign a state form to allow Bell to get a COVID-19 vaccine before traveling to be at his father's bedside after heart surgery.
But the 39-year-old, who suffers from hypertension, said he couldn’t get through to his doctor and eventually called a private, 24-hour emergency doctors network where he paid $45 for a virtual consult with a doctor who signed the form. “I wasn’t able to get anyone on the phone.
I wasn’t able to get an appointment. I'm privileged. I have the money to pay for that," said Bell, a father of three. “It just sets up a scenario where your outcomes are going to be different depending on your income