Houston luxury skyscraper faces doubts after some tenants had access to the vaccine

HOUSTON – While people wait to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, a luxury building in Houston is facing doubts about how some of its tenants had access to the vaccines.

A Montebello website calls the condominium building near the Galleria “one of Houston’s most important luxury buildings”, with units that can sell for millions of dollars. The questions are not about the listings, but about the COVID-19 vaccines.

About 60 residents received the vaccine this week, prompting an article in the Daily Beast to ask, “Why did this ostentatious skyscraper in Houston get vaccines for most people?”

The article quoted general manager Daniel Hancock as saying, “We are working with a distributor …”

Hancock did not appear with the KPRC 2, but said off camera that the building did not protect vaccines. He said the provider had previously offered flu vaccines to residents here and offered the vaccine after receiving the doses.

“These photos were applied by an authorized provider to people in Group 1B (specifically aged 65 and over), as expressly encouraged by the State of Texas. It is my knowledge that many other tall buildings with similar populations have also received vaccines designated for Group 1B, ”he said in a written statement.

A resident who took the photo said that most people who live in Montebello are elderly and, given his age, he doesn’t want to get COVID.

Hancock said the provider also offered vaccines to other buildings. The manager said the provider is on the state’s vaccine recipient list, but he did not want to say the provider’s name, so KPRC 2 could not verify this or contact the provider.