White House COVID-19 response coordinator Jeffrey Zients on Sunday shared the Biden administration’s concerns with vaccine inequity, particularly in communities of color that have been “disproportionately” hard hit by the pandemic.
Makes you feel particularly sorry for the underserved POC communities in states with GQP Governors, gleefully trashing mask mandates, occupancy limits, and other sensible precautions, all in the name of FreeDumb.
How much of this is a function of having prioritized the elderly instead of those who are exposed to large numbers of people as essential workers on a daily basis?
Full disclosure, I am neither, so I’ll be last in line either way.
POC make up a large percentage of workers in senior care, I’m going to go out on a limb and hope that they were vaccinated at the same time as residents. As for getting the elderly vaccinated first that is the most vulnerable population.
Then you have the rural population that lacks access to most healthcare, essential workers are urban, suburban, and rural,
Trying to figure out the one shoe fits all isn’t going to work, but then you have governors that have their heads up their asses.
I guess create a plan, try to stick with, but be able to roll with obstacles.
There’s an inherent conflict between the desire to protect the most vulnerable and the desire to end the pandemic as quickly as possible. Prioritizing essential workers (including senior care workers!) services the latter more effectively. Retirees have an easier time limiting their exposure than urban workers by orders of magnitude. Working in an urban environment is riskier than rural (especially commuting on public transpo) and the trend in the states with the most inequity has been rural (red) populations before (blue) urban ones.
I enjoy the luxury of working from home so my exposure has been near nil.
Then again, there’s Ron “Jab for Bucks” deSantis.
Many govs are handling the pandemic poorly, only Ron DeathSentence is also trying to profit from it.
I sincerely hope he sees charges before all is said and done.
“We are holding states and governors accountable for fair and equitable distribution of the vaccine.”
DeSantis isn’t going to like that.
Statewide, DeSantis has taken a personal hand in directing “pop-up” vaccination centers, the Herald reported. Last month, that led to ire from both Democrats and Republicans after he organized one in a mostly White, affluent part of Manatee County and then threatened to take vaccine away from counties where officials criticized his approach.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/03/04/florida-keys-desantis-vaccine-donation/
“Donors First”
Merrick Garland’s nomination is up for a vote on Tuesday I believe. I’m hoping that some well needed investigations start very soon afterward.
We may need to hire a few more special prosecutors to keep up with demand from corrupt Rs.
In Missouri Kansas City and St. Louis have been particularly underserved by Governor Parsons who is making sure his white rural Republican base are served long before people of color in the urban cores.
Miscellany.
And this is the mean tweet guy that Manchin, Sinema and the GOP happily voted in favor of.
ETA George Soros got cut a break here.
Who do you think planted the story…
Here you go,exhibit 1A caught.and denying.
And may I add.
I was wondering if the subtext for this statement from the WH was intended for DeSantis:
Giving preference to your wealthy, white donors is the definition of vaccine inequity.
DeSantis dialing for dollars=vaccines for donors? Lift up a rock and see what slithers out -follow the money.
… Thursday urged the U.S. Department of Justice to look into whether the $3.9 million in contributions made to the governor’s political committee since December were connected to favorable treatment for vaccine distribution.
This is good news but we still need to work hard on the equity piece.
OK. So I live in an “underserved” portion of a state (Washington), with a Solid Blue Governor, Solid Blue Senate representation in D.C., and some kinda “iffy” representation in the House.
Underserved in resources in a state pretty much dominated by Seattle interests.
Here’s what happened this week. I am in a county that has a large percentage of elders. They have gotten first dibs (after health care and essential folks) for vaccine. I support that. Now we are down to the 65-year olds. But our local rural hospital fucked up royally this past week, and gave about 36 patients a “lesser dose” of the vaccine, because they mixed up six vials of saline and vaccine that had less vaccine than would be effective. They “were placed side by side, with some of the “rejects” not correctly disposed of or marked.” But, because they inoculated 150 patients, they had no idea which of those were the 36 who got the lesser dose. So, all 150 people will have to have antibody tests when they get their second dose in three weeks, and those who do not show immune activity, they will have to get a third test after another 21 days.
This is what happens in areas where there are low level people in charge of vaccine administration (from top admin to the ones who give the shots.) That is why the govt. is excited about vaccines that don’t require special handling, special dilutions, special protocols for administering, and just one shot fits all needs.
I received my first dose (the day after this fuck-up), from the same facility, as I was instructed. I will be requesting an antibody test at the time of my second dose, to see if I have “immunity activity,” and might need a third dose. I don’t trust them from Adam…
I am an emergency volunteer for vaccines in another area of the county, working to provide citizens a lot better experience and outcome. But, of course, I do not have control over the storage, mixing, storage or process. And I am not the one giving the vaccinations. It scares me, frankly.
