💌 Do you love Philly? Sign up to receive Billy Penn’s free email newsletter to get everything you need to know about Philadelphia, every day.
Nearly three months after the launch of the COVID-19 vaccine, Philadelphia has made progress in closing the gaps, but racial, economic and geographical disparities persist, according to an analysis by Billy Penn.
Approximately 3 out of 10 people in wealthier central areas have already received their first dose. A few miles away, in a predominantly black pocket of Southwest Philly, the rate drops to just about 3 out of 50 residents – the smallest proportion among the city’s postal codes, as of this week.
The distribution data published by the Department of Health painted a sharp picture of the rich and those who don’t, since the first bottles arrived in Philadelphia in mid-December.
The reasons for persistent inequalities are numerous, including limited supply, language barriers, transportation problems and irregular data collection, along with registration systems that have enabled suburban residents to secure a large proportion of the city’s distributed doses.
The good news: the data shows progress on several of these fronts. Scroll down to see our most recent review, which will be updated regularly to reflect the new information.
On March 10, organizations across the city administered the first dose to more than 308,000 people and vaccinated almost 127,000.
Officials and advocates warned of the sharp divide between Philadelphia communities in January, when a quarter of the number of people passed through the system. At that time, blacks had received only 12% of Philly’s doses, despite the city’s population being about 44% black.
The data shows some changes, especially in the past two weeks, which have brought about the opening of several neighborhood clinics administered by the city and the Central City Vaccination Center, where FEMA helps vaccinate around 6,000 a day. Currently, city records show that blacks represent 24% of women receiving Philly’s vaccine and 22% of men.
By the end of February, the city’s five lowest-income zip codes – predominantly black and Latino neighborhoods – were at the lower end of the dose-distribution totem.
In the past two weeks, the geographical disparity has improved. Some of the poorest areas have doubled or tripled the percentage of residents who received the injection. The 19133 ZIP code for Fairhill, for example, went from 250 doses per 10,000 residents to more than 700 doses per 10,000.
Health officials say this is intentional. When scheduling appointments for the FEMA vaccination clinic, the Department of Health team prioritizes the areas that have the lowest rates, according to spokesman Jim Garrow.
“We removed the vaccine’s interest list and almost exclusively sampled the lowest vaccinated postal codes in the city,” said Garrow. “We are sending out invitations to these postal codes – and that fulfills most commitments.”
Even the low-income zip codes where improvements have been made are still far behind the more affluent areas of the city, the data show.
Center City and Northwest Philadelphia maintain the highest vaccination rates, while the deeply poor areas of northern and southwestern Philadelphia are among the worst.
Many people who meet the eligibility criteria still report difficulty in getting appointments at vaccination clinics. The number of outlets providing the jab has grown from a handful in mid-January to more than 130 in early March. Locations range from pharmacy chains to community health systems and vaccination sites, such as the one administered in partnership with FEMA. This week, Mayor Jim Kenney announced the addition of five new neighborhood clinics, adding to three already in operation.
Perhaps the most notable recent change: an increase in the number of vaccines arriving in the city. In late February, health commissioner Tom Farley said the limiting factor in Philly’s vaccination had shifted from supply to distribution.
Thanks in part to the FEMA website, which comes with its own CDC allocation, the number of doses distributed across the city has skyrocketed. The administration of the first dose more than doubled in the last month – from about 130,000 administered on February 9 to more than 300,000 administered on March 9.
The authorities are also trying to crack down on residents of suburbs who register for vaccines on the outskirts of the city, although providers are being advised to follow the CDC’s guidance of being negligent about residency requirements because, in general, the more people vaccinated, best.
Two weeks ago, about 56% of Philly’s doses went into the arms of city residents. This week, that number has risen to 65%.
Other issues that can distort the overall picture with regard to equity: data collection. Across Pennsylvania, counties have struggled to maintain consistent records with respect to patient demographics, Spotlight PA recently reported.
Philadelphia seems to be doing better than several other counties, even those with their own health departments, although the city still has no data, with at least 3% of doses going to people of unknown race or ethnicity.