Kokua Line: Is email about paid COVID-19 survey legitimate?

Questions: A few days ago I received an email claiming to be from UHERO regarding a COVID-19 study. Participants would be compensated. I did not get access to the page. I searched UHERO but could not find such a study, so I deleted that email. Do you know if this was legal or fake?

Reply: “The email is legitimate for a new research study from the University of Hawaii, which we launched last week, to measure the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in Hawaii. At the same time, we are also building the cohort of participants and infrastructure to quickly measure these impacts in the event that we get a new pandemic or disaster (hence the longitudinal aspect of the study), ”Ruben Juarez, a UH economics professor and research fellow at the UH Economic Research Organization, said in an email Thursday.

In a longitudinal study, researchers collect information from the same respondents over time.

The email you received, with the subject line “UHERO Health Impact Survey (up to $ 120 payment),” said UHERO “is looking for adults who are willing to answer no more than one paid survey per month to understand the effects of COVID-19 and other disasters in Hawaii. You will be compensated for each time you respond to the survey, starting with $ 20 today for a 30-minute baseline survey and $ 10 for each subsequent 10-minute survey, but not more than one per month. “

The study’s “informed consent” study explains that researchers will explore the long-term health effects of COVID-19 on people in Hawaii to recommend policies that correct health inequalities and improve the well-being of society. Study participants will be asked to share a range of information about themselves, including details of their possible experience with COVID-19; this includes the release of medical records. Survey responses will be “deidentified” for analysis at UH, stored securely and not shared with others, it said.

Juarez said 1,200 participants had completed the first survey by Thursday. The goal is to create a cohort of at least 2,000 respondents, he said.

Other potential participants had contacted directly to confirm the email, he said. One point of confusion was that the sender’s “noreply” email address differed from a UHERO email address listed as a contact in the email body. This was because automated survey software was spreading the email. Participants “who complete the survey can be assured that the email is valid and that their responses are stored securely at the University of Hawaii,” he said.

Adults who have deleted the e-mail or who have not received it, but who wish to participate in the survey, can e-mail [email protected] with their first name and email address, “and they should be added to the cohort if we have remaining space,” Juarez said.

Q: Did the CDC change its advice on the second COVID-19 booster?

ONE: Yes. Now, the federal health agency says that those 12 and older who are immunocompromised, and those 50 and older, should receive a second booster dose at least four months after their first booster; before Thursday, this was an option, not a recommendation.

As for the first boosters, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now recommends that children ages 5 to 11 get a booster shot five months after their first Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination series; persons aged 12 and over were already eligible. “Whether it’s your first booster or your second, if you have not received a vaccine dose since the beginning of December 2021 and you are eligible, now is the time to get one,” the CDC said Thursday.

Mahalo

Mahalo to all the airport staff and the friendly shuttle driver who came to my aid when I fell as I left the shuttle bus for the rental car at Honolulu Airport’s interisland terminal on Thursday. You were all very helpful and I am grateful for your concern and help. – Robert Alder, Hilo

Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email [email protected]