Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan released further plans Thursday to distribute COVID-19 vaccines more equitably to underserved parts of Maryland after leaders of the state’s largest Black populations criticized major disparities in the rollout of vaccinations to minorities.
“We’re not where we need to be with the Black community or the Hispanic community, and so we’re continuing to take every effort to ramp that up,” Hogan said at a news conference in offering new steps to improve on distribution efforts.
A task force led by Brig. Gen. Janeen Birckhead, the Maryland National Guard’s assistant adjutant general, is working with the state’s 24 local health departments and community and faith-based organizations to focus vaccination efforts on underserved and hard-to-reach populations.
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“We will continue to work with community leaders to find what approach works best, as they know best what works in their community,” Birckhead said.
The governor’s office also announced plans for the state’s Vaccine Equity Task Force to partner with the First Baptist Church in Glenarden and University of Maryland Capital Region Health to establish a large, community focused-vaccination site in Prince George’s County in Upper Marlboro.
