To avoid vaccine gerrymandering, the US must focus on racial equity | Byline Keon L Gilbert and Rashwan Ray

Without a focus on racial equity, vaccine allocation will further divide the country and perpetuate health inequalities

Evidence has emerged across the United States about how well-intended plans to encourage vaccinations and provide neighborhood access to communities of color have been usurped by more affluent white people who do not live there. For many communities of color, this form of vaccine gerrymandering unearths a collective memory of how the resources in their communities are often co-opted for white and corporate gain. For example, Prince George's county, Maryland, home to the most affluent predominately Black area in the country, had to cancel appointments to purge people from vaccine sign-ups who do not live or work in the county.

Related: Covid: US reporting fewer new cases but study warns variant may cause surge