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California health officials say that despite Gavin Newsom’s efforts to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine fairly to the state’s nearly 40 million residents, people living in poorer communities receive the vaccine at lower levels than those in richer areas live.
Newsom has partnered with the federal government to erect mass vaccination sites in working-class neighborhoods in Oakland and Los Angeles. He also instructed insurer Blue Shield to centralize the patch vaccine system in California and asked hospital chain Kaiser Permanente to help.
Patients receive a shot of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine at Families Together or Orange County Community Health Center, Friday, February 26, 2021 in Tustin, California. (AP)
Yet officials at community health centers that serve as the safety net for the poor in the U.S., on health equity, say they are not receiving enough doses for their patients – the residents who are very dangerous should be vaccinated by the state.
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In California, nearly 1,400 such centers provide free or inexpensive services to about 7 million people, many in communities with a higher concentration of low-income families and few Medicaid providers – known in California as Medi-Cal. Many of their clients speak a language other than English, work long hours and have no transportation.
Dr. Efrain Talamantes, chief operating officer of AltaMed Health Services, told The Associated Press it was discouraging to see the initial doses go elsewhere while his patients continued to test positive for the virus.
“Every time there is a clear difference in a limited resource,” he said.
Most states resort to ways to distribute limited vaccine supplies, leading to a mix of methods in the absence of a federal plan. California allocates vaccine doses through eligible groups, including teachers and farm workers. The free-for-all has enabled people with the most resources to record rare vaccinations.
As California has increased vaccination efforts through mobile and pop-up clinics at churches, workshops, and schools, state data shows how relatively few shots went to Latinos and Blacks compared to their population.
African Americans received 3% of the vaccine dose while making up 6% of the state. Latinos, who make up 39% of the state, received 17% of the doses.
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Blue Shield officials say they plan to keep health centers already administering vaccines open, but clinics are worried they will not receive enough doses.
Health centers have seen with dismay how vaccine for health workers initially went to larger hospitals in December. After that, they watched as more affluent, internet-savvy English speakers could navigate the web portals over time and drive long distances for appointments that flowed to vaccination arenas.
When Orange County began opening large vaccination sites in mid-January, community health centers also demanded doses, said Isabel Becerra, chief executive of the Orange County Community Health Centers Coalition.
“We do not have transportation. We do not speak English. We do not understand the technology you have to use from us to register and get in line. So we can vaccinate the population of 65 and older, their own facilities ? ‘she said.
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Jodie Wingo, interim president of the Community Health Association for Riverside and San Bernardino Provinces, said member clinics were expanding to vaccinate more of their 500,000 patients. But now they are only receiving a few dozen doses at a time.
“Everyone is working towards equity, but it does not seem fair at all,” she said.
FOX Business contacted the Newsom government press office for comment.
Associated Press contributed to this report.