University of Pittsburgh researchers School of Pharmacy found that in many parts of the country, blacks are less likely than whites to live near a pharmacy, clinic, hospital or health center that can deliver COVID-19 vaccines.
In the 69 counties surveyed, which are home to 26 million people, black residents were significantly more likely than whites to live more than a mile from the nearest vaccination site. These counties were particularly concentrated in Georgia, Missouri, Louisiana, Virginia, Texas, and Alabama. A third was in urban areas, including Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Detroit, New Orleans, and New York City.
Worryingly, nearly three-quarters of the boroughs with access differences also have high rates of new COVID-19 infections, which tend to be more deadly and severe in black Americans than in whites. The daily average between November 2020 and January 2021 was more than 50 new cases per 100,000.
The study complements a growing body of evidence showing differences in access to COVID-19 vaccines. ON Report released this week The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that only 5% of the 13 million Americans who were vaccinated against COVID-19 in the first month of the rollout were black.
“It is important to take a data-driven approach to ensure equitable distribution of vaccines,” said Inmaculada Hernandez, assistant professor at Pitt’s School of Pharmacy and lead author on the study. “Not all counties have the same constraints on existing infrastructure, and it is this variability that should be the focus of public health policy. We will not be able to vaccinate everyone if we have a unified strategy across the country. “
“Pharmacies should be easily accessible, but in some places there is little capacity or density and the floodgates are opening,” said Lucas Berenbrok, assistant professor at the School of Pharmacy and lead author of the study. “If there are obstacles like travel times, there has to be a plan to reach these people. We cannot forget them. “
This new analysis is an update of the School of Pharmacy and West Health Policy Center’s open access VaxMap, which was founded in December 2020 to measure the density of the vaccination facility and the distance traveled by all residents to places where COVID-19 vaccines are being administered. In the earlier iteration, the focus was on measuring barriers to access to vaccines for those over 65 years of age.
As with the previous maps, the researchers used Geographic Information System (GIS) software to map nearly 70,000 potential COVID-19 vaccine management facilities. In addition to the maps showing the average system density and the distance traveled at the district level, the researchers also created maps an interactive map View the location of each facility so anyone can check nearby options.
“As President Biden and his team work to deliver 100 million vaccines in 100 days, it is important that state and local authorities consider these geographic and demographic challenges in order to allocate additional resources to underserved areas,” said Tim Lash, president of West Health Policy Center. “If we are to get herd immunity and show up on the other side of this pandemic, we need to make sure that age, race, and zip code don’t define vaccine access and future health outcomes.”
“Our maps identified areas of the country where temporary vaccination centers are required in places like parking lots, stadiums, and exhibition centers to ensure all Americans have access to a vaccine,” said Sean Dickson, director of health policy at the West Health Policy Center. “We hope this analysis will provide the new government, as well as state and county governments, with information on where greater assistance is needed.”
