US Border Patrol Seizes 1,683 Fake COVID-19 Vaccination Cards From China

A COVID-19 vaccine record card is seen at a vaccination site in Miami Gardens, Fla., on April 14, 2021. Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials in Cincinnati have seized a total of 1,683 fake COVID-19 vaccination cards from China.

The U.S. border authority made the announcement in a press release published on Sept. 16. It said the counterfeit cards had misspellings and were of “substandard printing” quality, even though the cards displayed a “logo” from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The fake cards, arriving at the Port of Cincinnati from China in five different shipments since Aug. 16, were destined for non-medical entities in private residences and apartments in five states—Illinois, Maryland, Missouri, New York, and Texas.

The shipments also contained 2,034 fake Pfizer inoculation stickers. U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech jointly developed a COVID-19 vaccine that is now dubbed Comirnaty.

“Creating or buying a fake COVID-19 vaccination card is illegal, not to mention dangerous,” Cincinnati Port Director Richard Gillespie said, according to the release.

Gillespie added, “Purchasing counterfeit cards supports criminals whose only concern is their bank account, not American security or the health of our citizens.”

Many areas have enacted a variety of vaccine mandates, prompting people who do not want to get a jab to falsify their immunization status. Three Vermont State troopers resigned after an investigation showing that they created fake vaccination cards. An Illinois woman was arrested in early September for allegedly trying to use a falsified vaccination card when entering Hawaii.

According to the CDC, more than 180 million people in the United States have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Sept. 16. COVID-19 is a disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

The seizure in Cincinnati is hardly an isolated case. CBP officials have made similar seizures of fake vaccination cards from China in Memphis, Anchorage, Chicago, and Pittsburgh since August.

The seizures in Memphis and Anchorage resulted in more than 6,000 fake vaccination cards.

The seizure in Chicago took place on Aug. 31, when CBP officials seized a parcel destined for a residential address in Ohio. The parcel contained 19 fake COVID-19 vaccination cards.

In Pittsburgh, one shipment containing 70 fake vaccination cards was seized on Aug. 24, while another shipment containing 50 fake cards was seized on Sept. 7, according to CBP. The two shipments were headed to Beaver County in Pennsylvania.

“Coronavirus and its variants continue to pose a serious health and safety threat to American citizens, and so do unscrupulous vendors who peddle counterfeit COVID vaccination cards,”  said William Fitting, CBP’s Port Director in Pittsburgh, according to a CBP statement released on Sept. 15.