A programmatic update on COVID-19 vaccination in rural communities in the United States

Alexandra M Piasecki; Diane M Hall; Julie Zajac; Scott A Miller; Jane R Nilson

doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2024.04.043

A programmatic update on COVID-19 vaccination in rural communities in the United States

Vaccine. 2024 Apr 25:S0264-410X(24)00469-9. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2024.04.043. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Alexandra M Piasecki¹, Diane M Hall², Julie Zajac³, Scott A Miller⁴, Jane R Nilson⁵

Affiliations

¹ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Immunization Services Division, USA. Electronic address: vye1@cdc.gov.
² Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for STLT Public Health Infrastructure and Workforce, Office of Rural Health, USA. Electronic address: fqx7@cdc.gov.
³ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Immunization Services Division, USA. Electronic address: cgv7@cdc.gov.
⁴ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for STLT Public Health Infrastructure and Workforce, Office of Rural Health, USA. Electronic address: ajq1@cdc.gov.
⁵ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Immunization Services Division, USA. Electronic address: niu3@cdc.gov.

PMID: 38670846
DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2024.04.043

Abstract

When public health experts think of rural barriers to vaccines, they often initially focus on access, which makes sense with a new vaccine during a pandemic. This commentary highlights that there can be more complexity to vaccine uptake in rural communities. What follows are some examples of CDC's efforts to better understand rural health and learnings to inform ongoing vaccination efforts in rural communities.

Keywords: COVID-19 vaccination; Commentary; Partnerships; Rural; Vaccine equity.