Houston Health Department Knocks On Random Doors...Asks Residents To Give Blood Samples For COVID Antibody Study
Four individuals wearing masks can be seen holding clipboards and taking notes as they knock on the doors of private citizens, shouting, “Houston Health Department,” as they attempt to check on the vaccination status of residents in an apartment complex.
When one resident answers the door via intercom, the Houston Health Department worker can be heard saying, “I’m a [inaudible] with the Health Department—How you doing today?” The resident asks, “With the what?” He responds, “Houston department.” The worker explains, “We’re just going around the community to inform that you can get the vaccine for the coronavirus,” Have you been vaccinated?” he asks. “Yes sir, we are,” the resident responds. “May I ask, which one did you get?” he asks. “Um, the Pfizer.” the resident responds. “Um…how many people in your house got vaccinated?” he asks. The resident answers, “Just me and my wife—that’s all that lives here.” The health care worker asks, “Do you want me to leave the information at your door?” The resident tells him to just leave the information behind.
Watch the incredible scene here:
After we published our report about the invasive door-to-door campaign, we got a tip from a reader who sent us a September 2020 link to the Houston Health Department website.
As it turns out, knocking on the doors of private residences and asking citizens questions about whether or not you’ve been vaccinated isn’t the only invasive act by the the Houston Health Department.
In early September, as part of an antibody testing program to help them better understand how many people in the city previously had COVID, teams of health department and fire department paramedics knocked on random doors and asked residents to provide blood samples.
From the Houston Health Department website:
In September 2020, The Houston Health Department advertised a collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Rice University, and Baylor College of Medicine to conduct an antibody testing survey to understand how many people in the city were previously infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 on
The survey will identify people infected in the past with COVID-19 by the presence of antibodies, proteins the body’s immune system makes to fight infections. Antibody testing does not replace oral or nasal swab viral testing that looks for current infection.
Teams consisting of Houston Health Department staff and Houston Fire Department paramedics will visit randomly selected homes across Houston, asking household members to answer survey questions and provide a blood sample. Phase one is set to take place Sept. 8-24, with phase two starting in the winter of 2021.
“If we knock on your door, I strongly encourage you and your loved ones to participate in this important survey,” said Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner. “The data you provide by participating will help inform strategies to mitigate the effects of COVID-19.”
“We’re looking for not only how many people out there have the presence of an antibody, which means their body’s generated mechanisms to fight the virus, but also what that level of the antibody is,” said Dr. Loren Hopkins with the Houston Health Department.
She said over time the levels of those antibodies may decrease, so the department will be following up with people in January to test them again and see if the antibodies still exist in their bodies. There will also be a second set of people tested later on.
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