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Man uses fake arm to try to avoid Covid vaccine; nurse felt ‘offended’

December 4, 2021 | | Print Article

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An Italian nurse is very offended that a clever — but not clever enough — man tried fooling her into vaccinating him in what turned out to be a fake arm.

Because of newly instituted COVID restrictions in Italy barring the unvaccinated from “a host of social cultural and sporting activities,” the unnamed man decided that he needed to get himself a vaccine card, according to The Guardian.

The problem was that he didn’t want the vaccine. And so he thought, and he thought and he thought some more — and voila, he had his lightbulb moment.

The man, reportedly in his 50s, proceeded to buy a silicone prosthetic that may have costs hundreds of euros, attached it to himself and then went to get vaccinated at a vaccine hub in Biella.

And the plan almost worked …

(Source: Pixabay)

After filling out a consent form, he took a seat and prepared himself for vaccination by rolling up his sleeves.

“Initially, the health worker did not notice anything odd, as the silicone looked similar to skin,” according to The Guardian.

But alas, as she took a closer look and touched the arm, she grew suspicious and asked the man to remove his shirt.

Knowing that he’d been busted, the man then reportedly begged her to turn a blind eye. But alas once again, she refused.

The man is now reportedly facing charges of fraud. Meanwhile, the nurse is mad.

“I felt offended as a professional,” she said, according to The Guardian.

“It was so humiliating, thinking that a nurse cannot tell the difference between rubber foam and skin,” she added in separate remarks, according to The New York Times.

It appears the nurse doesn’t appreciate the man’s creativity.

The Times notes his stunt “is perhaps the most audacious scheme” attempted thus far.

Other schemes have involved “a trade in fake health passes on Telegram groups” and “anti-vaccination doctors who injected their patients with saline instead of vaccine in order for them to get a certificate.”

The nurse’s bosses in the Piedmont regional government are reportedly also unhappy.

“The case could be classified as ‘ridiculous,’ except that we are talking about a gesture of enormous gravity, unacceptable for the sacrifice that the whole community is paying for the pandemic,” the region’s president and health counselor said in a joint statement, according to CNN.

In a video message, the president, Alberto Cirio, added that the man’s attempt to fool the nurse was “an offense to the region’s health system, that is among the first in Italy for vaccination capacity and for booster doses.”

But is it really THAT serious? Not to social media users, it would appear. They’ve been busy relishing in the many, many, many jokes and puns that can be written about this.

Look:

However, the authoritarian COVID restrictions being imposed by countries such as Italy, among many others, are no joke.

According to The Local, in Italy a “super green pass” indicating that the person has either been vaccinated from the coronavirus or recovered from it is now required to participate in the following activities:

  • Indoor seating at bars and restaurants
  • Tourist sites, museums, and art exhibitions
  • Cinemas, theaters, concerts
  • Clubs and discos
  • Sports matches

In fairness to the Italian government, they are at least recognizing natural immunity. Over here in the United States, there is no such recognition in those blue states that have instituted vaccine mandates.

Vivek Saxena
Latest posts by Vivek Saxena (see all)

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