The city of Fort Worth is getting creative to get more people COVID-19 shots, sending workers door-to-door in neighborhoods with low vaccination rates. NBC 5’s Scott Gordon reports.
The city of Fort Worth is getting creative to get more people COVID-19 shots, sending workers door-to-door in neighborhoods with low vaccination rates.
In the last two weeks, they’ve gone to about 30,000 houses passing out flyers with information about how and where people can get vaccinated.
"We know there's social media, there's Facebook, there's Twitter, there's text alerts,” said code compliance supervisor Art Franco. “But there's nothing better than going up to someone's house, knocking on their door, talking to them, having someone in front of them to actually tell them there's a vaccine nearby."
On Wednesday they knocked on doors in the largely Latino Diamond-Hill neighborhood.
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Orlando Gutierrez said he already got his first shot and is waiting for his second one but is grateful for the city's effort.
"It's good. This helps out a lot right here,” he said.
Down the street, workers came across Daniella Gutierrez and her family.
Gutierrez, a mother of two who is not related to her neighbor Orlando, said she wants to get vaccinated but was worried about how to pay for it.
"We're just waiting on our insurance,” she said.
Informed it was free, Gutierrez said she and her mother would probably get the shot soon.
The city workers are part-time and are paid with federal COVID-19 funds given to the city.
They don't pressure anyone, just make sure they have the information they need.
"If they really don't want the vaccine, that's fine, we'll move on,” Franco said. “But at least they know if they change their mind in the future they know where to find us."
