HONOLULU — The state Department of Health is unveiling its newest tool to help encourage more Hawai‘i residents to get vaccinated: COVID-19 vaccination progress maps.
Based on vaccination data collected to date, the DOH’s Disease Outbreak Control Division has developed a new set of heat maps that show vaccination rates by ZIP code for each island.
The maps will be used to identify potential “vaccine deserts” — areas where access to vaccine may be limited. The goal is to increase access through innovative, community-based strategies.
“The vaccine is our best tool to move forward together as a state,” said Dr. Sarah Kemble, DOH state epidemiologist.
“These maps will allow us to work with partners to strategically schedule new vaccination clinics around the state. With this geographic information, we can deploy resources where they are needed most and bring the vaccine to where people live, work and play.”
According to vaccination data on June 3, over half (52%) of Hawai‘i’s total population has been fully vaccinated, and 59% has received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
While the state has made tremendous progress in the past six months and restrictions are beginning to loosen, there are still hundreds of thousands of unvaccinated people, and vaccination rates are higher in some areas than others, the DOH said.
“We want this data to promote health equity by identifying areas where people might be experiencing increased barriers to
vaccination,” said Joshua Quint, an epidemiologist with the Disease Outbreak Control Division who spearheaded the mapping project.
“We encourage people to monitor these maps and use them to encourage their neighbors to get vaccinated,” he said.
“Areas with lower vaccination rates represent opportunities to try new strategies that make it more convenient for people to get vaccinated. We are in a critical period where there is still ongoing community transmission. If more and more people continue to get vaccinated, we will prevent future outbreaks from causing unnecessary illness, hospitalizations and deaths. The COVID-19 vaccines are safe, effective, and represent the best way to protect yourself and your loved ones and speed up our recovery process.”
To view the new progress maps go to health.hawaii.gov/coronavirusdisease2019/what-you-should-know/current-situation-in-hawaii/#vaccine, scroll down to the Hawai‘i COVID-19 Vaccine Summary, and select the MAP button.
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Has anyone looked at VAERS lately? The spike protein is the toxin and it is being shedded in the breath of the jabbed. There is NO EMERGENCY and no need for jabs, just a need for scientists to behave as such.
Aloha
Agree 100%
. Maybe we should listen to Dr. Fraudci
Where is basic intelligence … not political … show up in our government.
Does this map show areas more susceptible to getting a virus? Bums on the street. Beach goers. Low income housing.