StreetSense Media covered our work in assisting unhoused residents of Washington, DC in getting vaccinations for COVID-19 and spent time at the clinic to help connect people to housing and other resources.
Efforts to vaccinate unhoused individuals not in the shelter system in the District have been underway since the end of March, but multiple community advocates have cited incidents of inequity when distributing to marginalized groups.
The D.C. Department of Human Services, partnered with the nonprofit Unity Health Care, hosted pop-up mobile vaccine clinics at multiple locations including Marvin Gaye Park, Miriam’s Kitchen, So Others Might Eat and near the NoMa encampments.
This rollout comes after D.C. distributed COVID-19 vaccines to people experiencing homelessness in low-barrier shelters and at Pandemic Emergency Program for Medically Vulnerable Individuals, or PEP-V, centers in February and March.
Earnest Telfair, an outreach worker with Unity Health Care, said “trust is key” when working with people experiencing homelessness, and he’s encountered a lot of vaccine hesitancy while working on the rollout.