Latinos have higher vaccination rates in big cities
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A doctor administers COVID-19 vaccine for NYC Council Member Ruben Diaz Sr. at Doctor Medical Urgent Care in the Bronx, which serves a large community of people of color. Photo: Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images
The number of Latinos getting vaccinated against the coronavirus in some of the most populated cities in the U.S. is slowly increasing.
Driving the news: Latinos have surpassed whites in the percentage of fully vaccinated adults in New York City. They represent 29.1% of the city's population and non-hispanic whites are 32.1%.
- 59% of Latinos aged 18 and older have been fully vaccinated, in comparison to 56% for whites, according to the New York City Health Department.
In other cities, such as Houston, Texas where Latinos represent nearly half of the population, their vaccination rates are also higher: The Houston Health Department has administered approximately 32% of its vaccines to Latinos and 28% to whites, as of Wednesday.
- In Philadelphia, 72% of Latinos and 66% of whites have received at least one dose. Latinos and whites make up 14.7% and 34.5% of the city's population, respectively.
- More Latinos — they are 11.3% of the population — have been vaccinated in Washington, D.C., than non-Latinos: 44.4% versus 36.9% respectively, as of Aug. 30.
- An estimated 80% of Latinos and 67% of whites have received at least one vaccine dose in San Francisco, as of Tuesday. Each group represents 15.2% and 40.5% of the population.
The other side: In Los Angeles, which is 48.5% Latino and non-Hispanic whites make up 28.5%, whites' vaccination rates (69.8%) are still higher than Latinos' (60.1%).
- In Chicago, where Latinos are 28.8% and non-hispanic whites are 33.3% of the population, 60.1% of whites and 14.2% of Latinos have been vaccinated.
- In Austin, Texas, where Latinos are 33.9% and non-hispanic whites are 48.3% of the population, 33% of vaccine doses have been administered to Latinos and 41% to whites.
The big picture: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that more Latinos than whites have received at least one dose since early August. As of Saturday, 40% of Latinos and 39.6% of whites had received one dose.
- White adults account for 57% of unvaccinated adults, according to recently released research from the Kaiser Family Foundation.
What's happening: The most recent Axios/Ipsos Coronavirus Index shows that vaccine hesitancy in the country is dropping, with fewer adults than ever now saying they won't take the shot.
- Among the causes could be the Delta variant's dominance, full-FDA approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, return to in-person classes.
Yes, but: People of color, particularly Blacks and Latinos overall "remain less likely than their white counterparts to have received a vaccine, leaving them at increased risk, particularly as the variant spreads," according to KFF.
- For Latinos, barriers include difficulty traveling to a vaccination center or fear of missing work due to possible side effects.
By the numbers: The CDC reports that race/ethnicity is known for 58.7% of people who have gotten at least one dose. Among this group, Latinos represent 17.2% and whites are 61.2%.
- But data shows that in the past 14 days, recent vaccinations reached a larger share of Latinos compared to overall vaccinations: 26.1% vs. 17.3%.
Zoom in: Between March 1 and Aug. 16, the share of vaccines going to Latinos increased, going up by at least 10 percentage points in six states, KFF writes, including
- Florida, from 17% to 31%
- Nevada, from 13% to 26%
- California, from 19% to 30%
- Texas, from 23% to 35%
- New Jersey, from 6% to 17%
- New York, from 9% to 20%
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