Inequity in vaccination data

People of color being immunized less, state health officials say

As early data show Coloradans of color are being immunized less than their white peers, state and local public health officials said Friday they are working to ensure equitable distribution of COVID-19 shots.

The state health department also said it will issue a new public health order to require providers such as hospitals and pharmacies to report demographic data, including race and ethnicity, to the state. It started displaying that data on its online vaccine dashboard Friday afternoon.

“It’s clearly unacceptable to have this kind of disparity here in Colorado,” Gov. Jared Polis said in a news briefing. “That’s why we’re aggressively taking this on.”

Almost 70% of people who have received COVID-19 vaccines in the state have been white, in line with their percentage of the population. By comparison, only 4.34% of those to receive the shots are Latino, despite making up 21.69% of the population. And only 1.84% of people vaccinated are Black compared to being 3.92% of the state’s population.

Earlier Friday, six of the state’s largest local public health agencies asked state and federal officials to prioritize COVID-19 vaccines for people of color and those with lower incomes.

Since the state began distributing the shots to people 70 and older, there have been “some ear

ly indications of inequities in vaccine uptake,” according to the news release from the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment, Denver Health and Hospital Authority, Boulder County Public Health, Broomfield Public Health Department, Jefferson County Public Health and Tri-County Health Department.

They make up a group called the Metro Denver Partnership for Health, which has pushed for various COVID-19 policies such as tighter restrictions during the fall surge.

Polis said the state is trying to address the disparities by setting up drive-thru vaccination sites to meet people where they live.

“We’ve made sure health insurance status, ability to present a photo ID play no role in getting the vaccine,” Polis said. “The more Coloradans that get the vaccine the better off we all are — the sooner this ends the pandemic. That’s why we are going to do everything we can to break down barriers to access.”

Rebuilding trust

Even before Colorado received its first doses of COVID-19 vaccines, advocates stressed the state would need to rebuild trust with communities of color and address vaccine hesitancy as part of the rollout.

But the state did not have a clear plan on how it would make sure people of color — who have experienced high rates of illness and death from the novel coronavirus — would get vaccinated.

State officials said Friday that as part of their efforts to increase equitable distribution, public health officials are partnering with counties — including San Luis, Pueblo and Denver — to host community clinics. The state also is launching a marketing campaign and working with transportation agencies to help Coloradans get to clinics and community organizations to reach people of color.

The call by local public health officials for equitable distribution comes a week after the mayors of Denver and Aurora asked President Joe Biden to give their communities direct access to COVID-19 vaccine supplies and greater control over distribution, especially to underserved populations and people without access to large health care systems.

Vaccine distribution has been led by the states, with the logistics in Colorado varying by county.

Last week, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock said he wanted the city to prioritize people experiencing homelessness.

Denver officials also want to model the vaccine rollout after its COVID-19 testing operations by operating smaller clinics in communities affected the most by the pandemic.

Denver’s Valverde neighborhood has one of the highest rates of COVID-19 hospitalizations and an immunization rate of only 40.5 per 1,000 people when it comes to residents 70 and older. By comparison, the city’s Central Park neighborhood has one of the lowest rates of hospitalizations and an immunization rate of 273.6 per 1,000 people, according to the news release.

The agencies in the Metro Denver Partnership for Health said that to address the inequities, they want to expand vaccination sites into under-vaccinated neighborhoods, build trust with communities and be transparent about historic and existing inequities, according to the news release.

“We can make significant progress in the region but will not be successful without strong federal and state leadership,” Margaret Huffman, director of community health services at Jefferson County Public Health, said in a statement. “We need our elected officials to provide adequate resources for these efforts and provide clear and consistent communication about vaccine availability and the importance of equity in vaccine distribution so that we may plan accordingly and keep our communities informed.”