How People Are Using ‘Fauxmorbidities’ To Get COVID-19 Vaccines

Not everyone is eligible yet to get a COVID-19 Vaccine, but the list of comorbidities that can make someone a priority on the list of those who can get a shot is also leading to what is now being termed as “fauxmorbidities”--people using borderline conditions to get shots ahead of their turn.

According to The New York Times, people have been skipping the line to get their vaccines early, with various wealthy people being called out for doing just that since they began to roll out at the end of 2020. However, one way that people have been successfully avoided waiting until their age group is eligible is by using the list of Comorbidities—or conditions that make someone a higher risk of developing severe COVID symptoms—to make themselves eligible.

Holly Peterson, a writer who was interviewed by the Times, admitted people in her social circle who were visibly slender were getting shots early by citing high B.M.I. as a condition that made them eligible to get the vaccine.

The Times wrote that the phrase “including but not limited to” which prefaces the list of conditions defined in New York State as ones that are comorbidities is what is giving people a seemingly open invitation to justify early vaccines, by using mild conditions—or “Fauxmorbidities.”

In New York State, the list of comorbidities includes a cancer diagnosis, chronic kidney disease, pulmonary diseases, intellectual and developmental disabilities, heart conditions, high blood pressure, immunocompromised states, obesity, pregnancy, sickle cell disease, diabetes, cerebrovascular disease, neurologic conditions and liver disease.

The Obesity categories and severe obesity categories have been among the ones allowing people to skip ahead of the line, with obesity defined as having a BMI of 30kg/m2-40kg/m2, and severe obesity defined as a BMI of 40 kg/m2 or higher.

According to the CDC’s BMI Calculator, that would mean a woman who stands at 5’3” and who weighs 170 pounds would qualify as Obese, while a man who stands at 5’8” and who weighs 197 pounds would also qualify. BMI notably does not take into account the measurements such as the ratio of fat/muscle or muscle mass and how it contributes to a person’s weight.

Each state’s list of comorbidities is different, with different conditions qualifying in each one. However, with more vaccines becoming available with three approved in the U.S., an increased supply is around—which means that adults of all ages could soon be approved. In fact, according to The Hartford Courant, all adults 16 and older will be eligible for their vaccines in the state of Connecticut on April 1.