Vax race data urged to assure equitable access
Robust racial demographic data on coronavirus vaccination is needed to avoid “vaccine redlining” and achieve equitable access for communities of color, according to U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley.
“We’re asking for that data to be collected, disaggregated and reported in real time because this is about saving lives,” said Pressley in a Thursday virtual briefing with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
“What we have to guard against are patterns of vaccine redlining resulting in inequitable access to communities that have been the hardest hit,” Pressley said.
Harvard Chan School Dean Michelle Williams pointed out that race and ethnicity data continues to be “unacceptably absent” on coronavirus cases, deaths and vaccinations.
In Massachusetts, 72% of people who have received a first vaccine dose are white, 10% are listed as unknown, 6% are Hispanic, 5% are Asian and 5% are Black, according to data from the Department of Public Health.
“We can’t have those communities that have been disproportionately impacted, you know, not accessing the vaccine,” Pressley said.
Supporting community health centers is key in getting the vaccine to those who need it most, said Pressley, who pushed for a large investment in health centers as part of the American Rescue Plan.
Several community health centers in Boston have stepped up to vaccinate residents such as Whittier Street Health Center and a number of Boston Medical Center partnerships that worked to open clinics at trusted locations such as churches.