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Vaccine Effort For Black, Latino Missourians Slow To Begin

Missouri tasked nine regional groups across the state with making sure Black and Latino communities had equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, but the effort is off to a slow start.

KCUR reported Monday that nearly two months into the vaccine rollout, four of the regional teams aren’t yet operational. Just 5% of doses in Missouri have gone to Black residents even though Black people make up about 11.5% of the state's population.

The theory behind the state plan was that a regional organization would know its area best. But regional officials say the effort is being hampered by a lack of state funding and confusion about what they see as vague state expectations.

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