Kent County Commissioner highlights racial disparity in vaccine distribution
and last updated 2021-02-24 23:24:02-05
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. â Statewide data is revealing widespread disparity in who is getting the vaccine, with current numbers showing minorities are receiving the vaccine at an alarmingly low rate.
The issue was addressed in the a press conference held by Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Lt. Governer Garlin Gilchrist. It s clear we need to continue our efforts to get more communities of color vaccinated and close the gap in the data that is being reported, said Lt. Gov. Gilchrist, who formed the Coronavirus Task Force on Racial Disparities at the start of the pandemic due to the number of deaths in the African American and Latino communities.
West Michigan clinic limited by lack of COVID-19 vaccine supply
The clinic has the capacity to vaccinate 40-50,000 people per day between first and second doses, according to its operators. Author: Emma Nicolas Updated: 9:42 PM EST February 15, 2021
A large scale COVID-19 vaccine clinic in Grand Rapids is prepared to give shots to tens of thousands of people each day, but current supply is limiting that reality.
The clinic held at DeVos Place is the largest in the region and is situated in a county that s lost over 600 people to the virus. State health officials have said the goal is to have one mass vaccination site per emergency preparedness region, but the state is not receiving enough vaccine to meet the demand.
Kent County negotiates rent-free terms for DeVos Place vaccine clinic
Courtesy ASM Global
Kent County, the Grand Rapids-Kent County Convention/Arena Authority (CAA) and SMG/ASM Global have reached an agreement on new contract terms for use of the DeVos Place Convention Center as a large-scale vaccination clinic.
Under the revised agreement, CAA, which owns the building, and SMG/ASM Global, the company contracted to provide venue management services, will make the convention center, 303 Monroe Ave. NW, available rent-free and will charge the vaccine consortium only for actual costs to operate the facility.
Those operational costs include utilities, janitorial and maintenance services, security and EMS services. The charges will only be incurred to the extent services are requested or used in the clinic’s operations.
Hospital leaders hope that community-based clinics will eliminate current disparities. Author: Emma Nicolas Updated: 11:34 PM EST February 10, 2021
Mercy Health Saint Mary s says it will hold pop up clinics and make the COVID-19 vaccine more accessible in neighborhood offices to address disparities in dose administration so far.
The Grand Rapids hospital has administered nearly 22,000 shots and of them 3% have gone to Black residents and 3% to Latinx residents, said Dr. Andrew Jameson during a Wednesday press conference. It is a huge priority, said Jameson, who is the medical director of infection prevention and control. It s a huge priority for the health department and us, and we re really open about being transparent about what that data is.