People of color face multiple barriers to vaccine access — including ‘skepticism of a system that has treated them poorly’

With early vaccination data in Philadelphia showing racial disparities, leaders from Penn Medicine, Mercy Catholic Medical Center and the community launched three clinics in a church, a high-school gym and a recreation center in predominantly Black neighborhoods.

The clinics owe their success, in part, to a “no/low-tech” approach that used automated text messages and phone calls to schedule appointments rather than a website ; the location of these clinics being close to where people reside; and partnerships with grassroots organizations and faith leaders. Recent polls suggest U.S. vaccine hesitancy has declined overall, with Black Americans — an early target of outreach efforts by healthcare professionals due to historical medical experimentation and racial inequality that persists today — showing the biggest jump in vaccine enthusiasm. Republicans and white evangelicals are the groups most likely to say they won’t get vaccinated, according to recent KFF polling.

“ A longstanding set of underlying structural inequities have likely created increased barriers to vaccine access for people of color and underserved groups. ” With that said, “there is still hesitancy out there, and we need to do work to make [people] vaccine-confident,” he added. Households with an immigrant family member may question whether they’re eligible to receive the vaccine , fear a potential impact on their immigration status, or face challenges supplying proof of identification or residency requested by vaccination sites, Artiga added.

People of color represented a majority of coronavirus vaccine recipients at community health centers between January and April, a recent KFF analysis found, and health centers seem to be reaching people of color at higher levels than broader vaccination efforts — “pointing to their longstanding role serving these communities,” Artiga said.

Some states have also sought to tackle racial inequity in vaccinations through strategies like allocating extra vaccine doses to hard-hit areas, setting up hotlines for scheduling appointments, and situating clinics in underserved communities, a KFF review shows. “ While the campus site remained open to anyone in Ohio, appointments at a new location were reserved for people from underserved zip codes. ”

I can get a vaccine at Sam's Club. Access isn't the problem.

Wow

thank you very much for your work

Health Health Latest News, Health Health Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

The Lack Of Representation In Dermatology Can Be Deadly For People Of ColorSkin cancer can be more difficult to diagnose in skin of color—but new initiatives are increasing representation and awareness in dermatology.
Source: ELLE Magazine (US) - 🏆 472. / 51 Read more »

India's crematoriums overwhelmed as virus 'swallows people'NEW DELHI (AP) — India’s crematoriums and burial grounds are being overwhelmed by the devastating new surge of infections tearing through the populous country with terrifying speed, depleting the supply of life-saving oxygen to critical levels and leaving patients to die while waiting in line to see doctors. For the fourth straight day, India on Sunday set a global daily record of new infections, spurred by an insidious, new variant that emerged here, undermining the government’s premature claims of victory over the pandemic. The 349,691 confirmed cases over the past day brought India’s total to more than 16.9 million, behind only the United States. The Health Ministry reported another 2,767 deaths in the past 24 hours, pushing India’s COVID-19 fatalities to 192,311. It's AP reporting. Still 'system' is accountable. What’s the answer? I cannot think of one, it’s an apocalyptic humanitarian catastrophe, the Prime Minister has bloody on his hands, criminal And Joe Biden still won't help
Source: AP - 🏆 728. / 51 Read more »