{"id":100530,"date":"2021-03-24T09:37:07","date_gmt":"2021-03-24T16:37:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/?p=100530"},"modified":"2021-03-24T13:00:03","modified_gmt":"2021-03-24T20:00:03","slug":"op-ed-an-open-letter-to-laco-public-health-director-re-covid-19-vaccinations-in-the-antelope-valley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/2021\/03\/24\/op-ed-an-open-letter-to-laco-public-health-director-re-covid-19-vaccinations-in-the-antelope-valley\/","title":{"rendered":"Op-ed: An open letter to LACo Public Health Director re: COVID-19 vaccinations in the Antelope Valley"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Co-authored by Ronda Perez, Executive Director of AV EDGE, and George Whitesides, \u00a0Chief Space Officer at Virgin Galactic<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Dear Dr. Barbara Ferrer,<\/em><\/p>\n

The Antelope Valley is being left behind in COVID-19 vaccinations.\u00a0 The numbers are clear.\u00a0 The vaccination rate for the area is currently 13.6%, roughly half the Los Angeles County average.\u00a0 The numbers are even more stark for those over the age of 65: only 45% are vaccinated in Palmdale and Lancaster, and more distant parts of the Valley have not even reached 30%.\u00a0 Meanwhile, many affluent communities in the County have now vaccinated over 70% or even 80% of their elderly.<\/p>\n

This is an issue of public health and equity.\u00a0 Historically, the Antelope Valley has sometimes been an afterthought in County planning, and unfortunately, we have seen that same disparity in the rollout of the vaccine.\u00a0 In addition to the lack of a mega site being established for our more than 400,000 residents, mobile units have been distributed in such a way that they are failing to reach our most at risk and vulnerable populations.\u00a0 There has been little to no coordination between the county and our regional leaders, healthcare establishments and community stakeholders about how best to address our valley\u2019s unique, diverse, and sprawling population.<\/p>\n

The AV experiences some of the poorer communities in LA County, most of them home to minorities, and we must start doing more to reach out to those groups.\u00a0 This is both fair and smart public health policy.\u00a0 On March 4, the Governor announced that the state would begin requiring 40% of all vaccine doses to the most vulnerable neighborhoods in the state to try to inoculate those most at risk. Those areas are considered most vulnerable based on metrics such as household income, education level and access to healthcare.\u00a0 Palmdale and Lancaster have at least five of the identified focal zip codes across the state that were supposed to begin receiving additional doses — but talking to people on the ground, it is clear this pledge has not yet materialized in a meaningful way***.\u00a0Furthermore, the doses that have reached the AV have not been evenly distributed to reach those most at risk.<\/p>\n

The cities of Lancaster and Palmdale have been self-sufficient, receiving little to no direct communication from the county since Covid-19 appeared in California.\u00a0 At the onset of the pandemic, we sourced our own testing kits directly from the manufacturers for our residents as well as PPE and oxygen for local hospitals, created small business rescue packages, restaurant dining incentives, rent abatement programs, and called in Samaritan\u2019s Purse in our greatest time of crisis to provide direct aid to families with loved hospitalized loved ones. It is true, that our success is through the heroic work of our local hospitals, first responders, innovative\u00a0aerospace industry partners and Samaritan\u2019s Purse. \u00a0We have experienced a lower-than-average vaccination rate despite the Governor\u2019s directive, but now we are urging your specific help.\u00a0 As the world has shifted away from testing and into vaccination mode, our region\u2019s leadership has most recently partnered with our local transportation agency, AVTA, to set up free bus service to and from our single large scale vaccination site (established in partnership with Kaiser Permanente) in an effort to make vaccines available to those lacking reliable transportation.<\/p>\n

However, more must be done, and we must do it now.<\/p>\n

We need to fix this now — and we can — but it will take a coordinated effort that avoids some of the past challenges experienced during the first month of vaccination rollout.<\/p>\n