Coronavirus vaccine brings relief to Utah homeless hospice

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - While no one living at a Salt Lake City hospice center for homeless people has tested positive for COVID-19, the vaccine's arrival has provided a new sense of relief.

Kimberlin Correa, executive director of the INN Between, said staff and medically fragile residents at the medical respite center began receiving coronavirus vaccines Saturday, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.

Utah is giving shots to residents and staff at long-term care facilities in its first vaccination phase, which also includes health care workers, first responders and teachers.

Those 70 or older are next in line, then people with underlying health conditions and those experiencing homelessness.

None of the INN Between's residents have contracted the virus, to the relief of its directors, who have watched outbreaks devastate many care facilities.

Though some residents raised questions about the shot, managers were not aware of anyone who ultimately refused the vaccine.

"In the beginning, I was actually in the camp of 'I'm not going to be one of the guinea pigs that's first in line for the vaccine,' and I was pretty adamant about that," resident Kathy Conway said. "Then, as we saw the results, I completely did a 180. And now here I am today ready to get my vaccine."