Man Refused COVID Shots Speaks Out after Lung Transplant

Do you know that because of refused COVID shots several nations failed to reach their COVID-19 immunization coverage objectives? However, the reasons for not being vaccinated may be more complicated than simply refusing the vaccination.

Some people have refused COVID shots due to the worries about hurried vaccine development, which COVID vaccine is better and while others have stated that they would rather wait and see. Others have chosen not to get immunized because they feel they are not in a high-risk group.

 A 43-year-old Texas man, who refused the COVID-19 vaccine some months ago, became infected with the coronavirus and required a double lung transplant to survive. Now he’s speaking out and pushing others to learn from his mistake by getting vaccinated. 

Joshua Garza, 43, of Sugarland, refused COVID shots in January because he thought he is immune enough to avoid getting infected by the SARS virus. He said, “I don’t want to be the guinea pig.” Soon later that month he was tested positive and got very sick.

Garza’s health rapidly deteriorated after being tested positive with COVID-19. Garza fell while trying to walk into his house in early February, and his wife requested an ambulance to transport him to the hospital. He was eventually transported to Houston Methodist, where he was fitted with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) equipment that would pump and oxygenate his blood. 

Garza was placed on the lung transplant waiting list and scheduled for surgery. After two months of life support, he spent several weeks recuperating and rehabilitating before being recovered. He was discharged from the hospital on May 27 after spending many weeks there.

According to Huang, Houston Methodist continues to encounter patients with severe COVID-19 diseases and among them, many have not been vaccinated. It’s impossible to tell for sure, but Huang feels that if Garza had taken the vaccination when he could, “it’s likely that we would have never gotten to this point.” 

He also added that “the data that’s now coming out suggests that the vaccines are very good at preventing severe illness,” and “Even if he had ended up in a hospital, maybe it wouldn’t have progressed all the way to complete lung failure that couldn’t be salvaged without a lung transplant.”

Lung transplants are uncommon among COVID-19 patients, but they are occasionally essential for individuals who have no other choices. Houston Methodist has completed eight double lungs transplants on COVID-19 patients and currently has numerous patients on life support awaiting a transplant.