Disparities in US COVID-19 vaccine distribution

Editor's Note

This study led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego, finds that healthcare facilities in counties with higher Black composition and rural areas with large Hispanic populations were less likely to serve as COVID-19 vaccine administration locations during the initial rollout in May 2021.

At that time, 61% of eligible healthcare facilities and 76% of eligible pharmacies provided COVID-19 vaccinations. Researchers compared these rates with socioeconomic features of the county each facility was located in.

Among the findings:

• Facilities in counties with a high proportion of Blacks were less likely to serve as COVID-19 vaccine administration locations, compared to those with a low proportion of Blacks.
• Facilities in metropolitan area counties with large Black populations had 32% lower odds of administering vaccines, compared to those in counties with small Black populations.
• Facilities in rural counties with large Hispanic populations had 26% lower odds of administering vaccines, compared to those in counties with small Hispanic populations.

The lower administration of COVID-19 vaccinations in minority populations and rural areas had been attributed to vaccine hesitancy, but decreased access to vaccination sites may also be a barrier, the authors conclude. Further researcher is needed to identify the reasons why COVID-19 vaccines were not equitably distributed to all healthcare facilities.