Philly Ends Ties With Coronavirus Group After Policy Changes

Philadelphia PA

26 January, 2021

11:34 AM

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PHILADELPHIA — The city of Philadelphia has ended its partnership with a group that had been providing coronavirus testing and vaccinations in the city after a sudden change to the group's non-profit status and its privacy policy. In an announcement Monday, the Philadelphia Department of Public Health said will no longer work with Philly Fighting COVID to provide coronavirus testing or vaccinations, effective immediately. The decision comes after the group, founded by Drexel University student Andrei Doroshin, changed its corporate status from nonprofit to for-profit. "We're just a bunch of, like, college kids trying to help out and we're getting kneecapped right now," he told the Philadelphia Inquirer. Philly Fighting COVID partnered with the city to offer testing and was providing vaccinations at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The group also had a vaccination interest survey, which the city recommended residents eager to get the vaccine complete. However, with the change to for profit status came a change in the group's privacy policy. "As part of this change, PFC updated its data privacy policy in a way that could allow the organization to sell data collected through PFC's pre-registration site," the health department said in its announcement. While the city has not been notified of any data being sold, the health department called making the changes without discussion with the city "extremely troubling." "As a result of these concerns, along with PFC's unexpected stoppage of testing operations, the Health Department has decided to stop providing vaccine to PFC," the health department said. According to the group's privacy policy, which was added to the group's website following questions about the data, submitted data will not be sold to any parties. The data, however, can be provided to affiliates and business partners of the group, per the policy. "I will undergo an audit to show I never shared the data," Doroshin said. "I will do whatever I have to do." Plans are underway to shift future vaccine allocations to other providers, and the health department is scheduling new clinics to ensure that people who were vaccinated at Philly Fighting COVID's clinics at the Convention Center can get their second dose. About 7,000 people have received their first vaccine doses from Philly Fighting COVID. The Health Department will be in contact with each of those people to set up appointments. Last week the city launched its own vaccine interest survey for residents. Take the survey here. The survey is designed to determine when residents are able to get the vaccine and the information submitted will be kept confidential with the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. By registering through this website, the Health Department will be able to contact residents to set up an appointment when they are eligible and vaccine is available. As of Tuesday, 87,451 people have received one dose of the vaccine in Philadelphia; 22,270 have been fully vaccinated, according to the city.