Governor announces Maryland Vaccine Equity Task Force

By Ben Terzi
Special to The Baltimore Watchdog

Gov. Larry Hogan on Thursday announced the formation of a COVID-19 Vaccine Equity Task Force and the first vaccine equity operations plan to ensure doses are evenly distributed across the state.

Led by Maryland National Guard Brig. Gen. Janeen Birckhead, the special task force will serve vulnerable communities by collaborating with community groups and leaders to increase access to the vaccine.

“What you need to know is we are committed to ensuring access to the vaccine by reaching out to the community, faith-based organizations,” Birckhead said, while taking over from Hogan in the press conference. “Intentionality is our mantra.”

Birckhead explained that the task force will have a seven-step plan that includes allowing at-risk communities to submit potential vaccination sites. The proposed sites will be reviewed by staff. Then, the task force will conduct visits to the proposed sites to determine suitability for a given community, while developing support plans.

Once the support plans are fully reviewed, they will be submitted to the Maryland Department of Health for vaccine allocation. Upon approval for vaccine numbers, the task force will provide assistance to help operate the accepted vaccination sites, she said.

The effort is designed to approach certain needs that are dependent on individual communities. Rather than a one-size-fits-all, Birckhead said opening multiple community sites will allow the task force to address needs quicker and faster than if they were to open large mass vaccination sites.

The Vaccine Equity Task Force will use data from the 2020 census, as well as from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to determine areas where populations are more at-risk. The data will identify at-risk communities, how much of a population is over 65-years-old, the annual community income below $49,000 and the amount of minority and single-parent households in a given community.

Other determining variables include the number of COVID-19 cases, unemployment rate and amount of people who have received first doses in a community.

Birckhead said the task force already has worked with Baltimore City community organizations to set vaccination sites at Sacred Heart of Jesus and New Shiloh Baptist Church. Coordinating with Johns Hopkins Hospital, the task force administered 176 vaccinations in one day at Sacred Heart where the church primarily serves Hispanic and Latino X communities, she said. The task force will have a projected 250 administered doses at New Shiloh by Saturday, she said.

“While this one instance reflects our accomplishments, we still have a way to go,” said Birckhead.

During the news conference, Hogan was asked about Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott’s frustration with the state government on the number of doses available for city mass-vaccination sites. Hogan was quick to mention the numerous conversations he has had with the Baltimore City Health Department, expressing how he doesn’t want to criticize Scott in any way.

However, Hogan said Scott rejected $9 million in COVID-19 relief funding. He added that Scott “tries to point the finger and blame it on [the state].”

At his own press conference moments later,  Scott responded to Hogan’s allegations, claiming they were categorically untrue.

“As was communicated to the Maryland Department of Health in February, Baltimore has applied directly for federal dollars throughout the pandemic for 100% reimbursement,” Scott said, “rather than using the state as a pass-through, where federal dollars were capped.”