House Democrat calls for demographic breakdown of COVID-19 vaccines

representative Grace MengGrace Meng Remember Asian American Voters Democrats See Turnout Rise Among Asian and Pacific Island Voters Five House Democrats Who May Join Biden Cabinet READ MORE (DN.Y.) Sunday called Xavier BecerraXavier Becerra Goodwin Liu’s background and experience makes him an ideal choice for California Attorney General Braun: Biden set to reconsider the Cabinet of HHS candidate Xavier Becerra Biden, gradually confirmed by Senate MORE, President Biden’s candidate for Secretary of Health and Human Services, to collect and provide data disaggregating vaccine delivery demographics to address health inequalities among vulnerable populations.

“Racial inequalities in health, justice, housing, employment and education are rife and deeply embedded in the fabric of our nation,” Meng said in a statement. “Blacks, Asians, Hispanics, Native Americans, other minority groups, the LGBTQI community, and Americans with disabilities fought to achieve true equality before the national health pandemic struck.”

Meng is currently seeking to convince other lawmakers to sign a letter to Becerra, which she plans to send on Monday.

“A national demographic breakdown of COVID-19 vaccines administered is imperative for Congress to assess and address gaps in the rollout of COVID-19 vaccination,” Meng wrote. “This information will also be critical in addressing long-term health disparities and racial inequalities among vulnerable populations.”

“Everyone needs to be immunized and communities of color need to have equal access,” Meng said.

In his letter, Meng asked what vaccine administration data has been received from states and territories so far, whether the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has collected vaccine demographics and what the government agency was planning to do something about it. “Social vulnerability” in the distribution of vaccines.

Since communities of color, particularly black and Hispanic communities, have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic, data suggests that they received comparatively lower shares of the vaccine compared to whiter and larger populations. rich.

Black and Hispanic Americans are more likely to work in jobs that expose them to the virus and are more likely to suffer from a more severe case of the virus due to underlying health issues.

In addition to the lack of access, reluctance to immunize may also have contributed to the decline in the immunization rate in these communities. A recent study by Pew Research found that 42% of black Americans said they would receive the vaccine, compared to more than 60% of white and Hispanic adults.

Nominated by Biden for Surgeon General, Vivek MurthyVivek MurthyBill and Melinda Gates warn pandemic could trigger ‘inequality in immunity’ Biden to appoint nurse as acting surgeon general: report shows Sunday, addressed the apparent inequity in an interview last week and appeared to share Meng’s call for demographics to be collected.

“We already know from the COVID crisis over the past year that some communities have been hit hard by this virus, that rural communities have had more difficulty accessing resources, that communities of color have experienced more cases and deaths, that older people have struggled with, especially those in long-term facilities, ”Murthy said.

“We need to make sure that we have data on where the vaccine is being administered, so that we can make sure that it is indeed distributed fairly,” added Murthy.