Dallas County’s first COVID vaccines went to these wealthy northern neighborhoods

Updated at 4:15 p.m. with feedback to data.

Only 97 residents who live near the Dallas COVID-19 vaccination site at Fair Park were among the first 3,000 vaccinated in its first week of operation, according to a Dallas Morning News analysis of limited data on counties released on Saturday.

Meanwhile, more than half of Dallas County’s first doses went to residents who live above Interstate 30, which for decades has divided the city based on race and wealth. The county’s first data cache was only broken down by zip code and did not include specific demographics such as race, gender, and age.

Yet this snapshot appears to show that elected officials may not meet their goal of providing equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine.

Dr. Michael LeNoir, former president of the National Medical Association, an association of black physicians, was not surprised by the first reports of inequalities in the Dallas County vaccination program. Underfunded health services, mistrust of the health care system on the part of blacks and Latinos and a lack of grassroots networks all contribute to the problem, the South Dallas native said.

“We have to make sure that there are opportunities to get the shot,” he said. “And we have to talk about the virus and the vaccine in a rational way.”

More than 10,000 people have been vaccinated at Fair Park this week after the site opened on Monday, county officials said.

The Fair Park site and other state vaccination centers are open to all residents. But city and county officials had put their hopes in helping black and Latino residents by opening the first mega site in south Dallas. Mid-week poor communication and technical issues with the county reservation system gave a different result.

Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins, who is responsible for emergency management for the county, admitted the crowds were predominantly white.

The new data reinforces some of the that: Residents of three north Dallas zip codes received the most vaccines, county data shows less than a third of the doses administered this week at Fair Park. North-central zip code 75230 came first with 164 shots, according to the data. This was followed by the University Park ZIP code 75225, which received 152. And 96 people from the Dallas Far North 75248 ZIP code were also vaccinated.

One of the hardest hit postal codes during the pandemic was 75227, which includes Pleasant Grove. Only 47 residents of this southern Dallas neighborhood were vaccinated during the site’s first days. And only eight people in the Fair Park 75210 zip code received doses.

“It’s not enough just to have a vaccination site in a community,” said Amber Sims, co-founder of the Imagining Freedom Institute, a Dallas nonprofit focused on racial equity.

The marked differences between these communities can be seen in household income, according to data from the US Census Bureau. For example, the median household income in 75230, which includes Preston Hollow, is $ 91,596, while it is $ 43,890 in Pleasant Grove 75227. The median household income in the Dallas-Fort Worth area is $ 70,281.

The state has made the vaccine available to frontline healthcare workers, people over 65, and people with serious illnesses that can make COVID-19 worse. But Dallas County prioritized North Texans out of 75. Officials said they were more likely to drain hospital resources if they fell ill.

In a statement on Saturday, Jenkins said he hoped that by reverting to a system where people have to make appointments to get vaccinated, the county can ensure the vaccine is distributed more fairly.

“For this to continue, it is imperative that everyone do all they can to encourage listings, especially in postal codes below the digital divide where listings are currently lagging behind.”

County officials said the nominating system is already offering more people. The county invited 9,000 people aged 75 and over to get vaccinated on Saturday and Tuesday. While race and ethnicity data was unknown for about 3,000 of the invitations, more than 4,200 were Asian, Black, or Hispanic. Reservations also showed greater geographic diversity, with clusters in Irving, DeSoto, Richardson and Grand Prairie.

“These efforts are meant to offset what we saw in the first 3,000,” Jenkins said. “In the future, we will have a lot more parity. We try to be fair to everyone. “

The situation is dire: an earlier analysis by The news found that black and Latino youth were dying from COVID at a disproportionate rate compared to whites. And new cases of the coronavirus continue to be reported in record numbers. Hospitals are at breaking point. A more contagious strain of the virus is gaining momentum, with the first reported case in Dallas County announced on Saturday.

County commissioner Elba Garcia, who represents western Dallas County, said local governments responsible for vaccinations faced many challenges, especially a limited supply of vaccines.

“The challenges are many, and that’s because we don’t have enough vaccines,” she said. “I have a lot of demand and not enough products.”

In the absence of more vaccines, Garcia said, the county must work to focus on the most vulnerable zip codes it has already identified.

In a statement, Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson echoed Garcia, calling for more vaccines. He asked the state to deliver doses directly to the city.

“I will continue to do whatever I can to ensure that the most vulnerable – not just the well-connected – have access to the vaccine and that we can achieve herd immunity across our city,” Johnson said.

Sims said the government needs to do more to reach vulnerable communities.

“It will take more than a few city officials to say they’ve taken the vaccine,” Sims said. “This will continue to demand that Dallas grapple with its history of racism and inequity.”

How to get the COVID-19 vaccine in Dallas

The Dallas County Department of Health, Parkland Health & Hospital System, and UT Southwestern Medical Center are considered vaccination centers by the state and work together to vaccinate people from a registry list. unique, which the county had previously established. Any North Texan can register on the county’s website or call 469-749-9900.

After a few days of allowing anyone 75 years of age or older without an appointment to get vaccinated at Fair Park, the county will once again require people to reserve slots. The Fair Park site will be closed Monday for Martin Luther King Jr.