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Vaccine Hogs, Part 4Brooklyn judges at the trough.

ByTimothy Noah
Posted Monday, Oct. 25, 2004, at 6:25 PM ET

An editorial in the Oct. 25 New York Daily News relates the following:

Each year, the judges and their staffs at the Brooklyn courthouse get flu shots, at $20 each, courtesy of nearby Long Island College Hospital. This year, vaccinations were set for Oct. 20 at the courthouse.

… Then came news [on Oct. 5] of the vaccine shortage. On Oct. 12, hundreds of court employees were notified that the shots would be canceled. Later that day, by phone and e-mail, a second, secret message was relayed to 50 or so judges saying, according to one robe-wearer, "Don't tell anyone, but we're giving the shots to judges next Wednesday."

According to the Daily News, most of the judges who were contacted went ahead and got their shots.

Vaccine Hogs Archive:
Oct. 22, 2004: "Chicago Bears at the Trough"
Oct. 21, 2004: "You Knew Tom DeLay Had To Be One, Right?"
Oct. 20, 200f: "Not Every Member of Congress Needs a Flu Shot"

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Timothy Noah is a senior writer at Slate.
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