Progress on vaccinating Marylanders is lagging statewide, and even worse among some of the most affected areas and groups. A State Senate Workgroup is monitoring the problem with state officials on a weekly basis. Please sign-on to our letter asking Governor Hogan for more equitable vaccine access across the state.
The Honorable Larry Hogan, Governor of Maryland:
We are writing on behalf of Maryland Nonprofits, which represents more than 1,000 nonprofit members from across the state of Maryland, and Maryland Latinos Unidos, a program of Maryland Nonprofits, representing Latino-led and Latino serving nonprofit organizations, and the signatories to this letter.
En primer lugar, le agradecemos su liderazgo y su trabajo con la Asamblea General para aprobar rápidamente la Ley de Recuperación para la Economía, los Medios de Subsistencia, las Industrias, los Empresarios y las Familias (RELIEF), que incluirá financiación para el acceso a las vacunas, los bancos de alimentos, la salud mental y las organizaciones sin ánimo de lucro en este gran momento de necesidad. Pero incluso con esta ayuda, el problema de garantizar un acceso y una distribución equitativos de las vacunas Covid-19 sigue siendo grave en todo el Estado.
Nonprofits are part of the essential workforce that delivers basic health and social services to communities across the state. Our members are increasingly concerned with the lack of equity in vaccine distribution to date, as well as the lack of clear plans on how we will expand vaccine access and adoption in Black, Latino and low-income communities. Nonprofits and faith-based organizations have the connections, trust and knowledge of their local communities and must be provided resources and a regular forum with Maryland Department of Health to participate fully in vaccine access work. This is a race against the clock to get to zero infections in Maryland.
Nos preocupa especialmente que las comunidades más afectadas por COVID-19 sigan siendo aquellas con tasas de vacunación desproporcionadamente más bajas. Como ejemplo, el condado de Prince George, el condado más afectado por COVID y el condado con mayor número de residentes latinos y negros, tiene una tasa de vacunación de menos de la mitad de la media estatal (3,7% en el condado de Prince Georges frente al 7,8% en todo el estado) según los datos proporcionados al Grupo de Trabajo de Supervisión de Vacunas del Senado el 15 de febrero de 2021. Los datos del Departamento de Salud de Maryland esbozan además que sólo el 15% de las vacunas se han distribuido a las personas de raza negra que constituyen el 31% de la población del estado y sólo el 3,7% se han distribuido a las personas hispanas que constituyen el 10% de la población del estado.
Debemos contar con un plan y con una mayor aportación de la comunidad para garantizar la equidad y que superemos los siguientes obstáculos:
- Cost: Ensure vaccines are free and do not require copays.
- Internet Access: Expand opportunities for people without internet to obtain information and assistance in making appointments by phone.
- Transportation Access and Disability: Ensure people without transportation and people with disabilities are reached and can be vaccinated through a mobile site or have transportation provided.
- Outreach by Trusted Messengers: Ensure Black, Latino and other immigrant and low-income communities receive vaccine information in numerous ways from trusted messengers.
- Vaccine Site Placement and Mobile Vaccination Clinics: and that vaccination sites are located in walking distance to where people live in communities with high numbers of Black, immigrant and low-income communities.
- Language Access: Ensure vaccine information is available in multiple languages and that vaccine administration sites are equipped with interpreters and health practitioners who are from the community and speak different languages.
- Vaccine Hesitancy: Ensure funding is provided to support partnerships with trusted organizations that can help address vaccine hesitancy in Black and Latino communities and across all Marylanders. We cannot underestimate the concerns that our neighbors face – particularly regarding the historical treatment of Black communities in the area of medical experimentation and of Latino communities in terms of deportation and detention. The current implementation of plans for vaccine distribution are not putting us in a position to tackle these real problems.
Nonprofits are particularly well suited to serve communities that experience barriers to vaccination. We ask that the nonprofit community be provided with a direct channel of input into the issue of vaccine access over the coming 6-12 months. We believe the nonprofit community can significantly add value to expand vaccine access and adoption across the State. Please engage us in a robust way as part of the vaccine solution in Maryland so we can bring our infection rates down to zero and get Maryland moving again!
Gracias por todo lo que están haciendo para mantener a Maryland a salvo y avanzando en medio de la pandemia.
Atentamente,
Heather Iliff, President & CEO, Maryland Nonprofits
Gabriela Lemus, Executive Director, Maryland Latinos Unidos
