California Among Worst For Getting Vaccines From Vulnerable Populations

About a quarter of California’s population has so far received a vaccine against the coronavirus, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, most of the shootings so far appear to have been aimed at populations less vulnerable than others.

Public health officials say they are working to improve those numbers.

The CDC released a report last week that measured the county’s vaccine deployments with respect to “social vulnerability.” The vulnerability index included several factors, including race, education, poverty level and housing, which the agency said were also linked to higher rates of coronavirus.

“The results of this study indicate that vaccine coverage against COVID-19 was lower in high-vulnerability counties than in low-vulnerability counties, a finding largely driven by socio-economic disparities,” the report said.

The report looked at around 49 million hits distributed between December 14 and March 1. Of the 48 states studied in the report, California ranked 44th in vaccinations among the most socially vulnerable county residents. About one in four shots went to those counties, the CDC said.

The states that ranked below California for vaccine distribution in the most vulnerable counties were Kansas, Maryland, Idaho, and New Hampshire.

The CDC report acknowledged that states have different vaccination deployment strategies and that, because doses were distributed based on population densities, less vulnerable counties may have received more vaccines. The agency also reiterated that each state’s priority list for eligible patients is different.

In the first months of the deployment, California prioritized medical workers, the elderly and residents most at risk.

The CDC highlighted Montana, Arizona and Alaska, where 40% of vaccines went to socially vulnerable counties. The report noted that these states have taken early steps to address vulnerable populations through outreach, especially through tribal health organizations, directing vaccines to these communities and, in some cases, offering free transport to the sites.

“Promotion, awareness and administration of immunization could focus on high vulnerability populations in counties (eg providing resources to federally qualified health centers when socio-economic disparities are identified)” , recommends the report.

On March 4, California Governor Gavin Newsom and state health officials announced a plan to double vaccine allocation to hardest-hit areas to address inequalities in vaccine deployment. In a statement to ABC News, the California Department of Public Health said the CDC’s report highlighted their latest efforts to get vaccines to the state’s most vulnerable communities.

“With the implementation of the National Immunization Network, the state will be able to accurately collect data on those vaccinated and direct vaccines and resources to communities where vaccinations have fallen behind,” said the department in the press release.