Von Deffner News Today

On skid row, where physical and mental distress are on parade, 'we are forecasting a tsunami of seniors and families with children,' says the Rev. Andy Bales.

Vaccinating the homeless population for COVID adds a whole new layer of difficulty Benjamin Oreskes © Provided by The LA Times Lance Curtis, 65, receives a COVID-19 vaccination from registered nurse Katherine Han at Los Angeles Christian Health Centers — Joshua House Clinic on Winston Street in the skid row area of downtown Los Angeles. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) For Lance Curtis, the journey to receive the COVID-19 vaccine began with a phone call from Los Angeles Christ...

For Lance Curtis, the journey to receive the COVID-19 vaccine began with a phone call from Los Angeles Christian Health Centers. Doctors and nurses had culled a list of nearly 900 homeless people they wanted to vaccinate. Their outreach workers walked the streets of skid row preaching the gospel of Moderna’s two-shot salvation. And they sought out people in the community’s large shelters to make sure they got pricked. The goal was to offer a lifeline to one of Los Angeles’ most vulnerab...