Merced County supervisors say state COVID plan neglects San Joaquin Valley counties
The Merced County Board of Supervisor’s update on Tuesday about the status of the COVID-19 included a discussion on the topic of equity — and whether the county is getting its fair share of vaccines from the state.
Local public health and elected officials alike aired simmering frustrations about the availability of vaccines in Merced County two weeks ago during the last COVID-19 update. Comments made on Tuesday showed little has changed.
The state’s vaccine rollout, county officials said, is not only flawed but has particularly neglected San Joaquin Valley counties like Merced due the vaccine allocation plan.
That plan has led to Merced County receiving the third lowest number of vaccine doses per capita in the state, county officials said. Meanwhile, the county’s COVID-19 deaths per capita are among the highest in California.
For this dichotomy to exist means that the state’s vaccine allocation formula is “broken,” Dr. Kristynn Sullivan, Merced County Public Health supervising epidemiologist and operations chief, said on Tuesday.
“There’s not an excuse for why in that two months (since vaccine distribution began) the algorithm hasn’t been assessed,” Sullivan said.
Since Dec. 17, about 13,450 vaccine doses have been received for Merced County’s roughly 278,000 residents, according County Public Health numbers.
County Supervisor Scott Silveira said that for all the state’s emphasis on the COVID-19 response being equitable, the term has thus far only been a buzzword.
Silveira urged residents to join with county leadership in continuing to appeal to the state for a fairer share of vaccines.
While county leadership chafes at the state’s handling of doses, local officials praised the COVID-19 vaccination clinic which debuted at the Merced College gym Tuesday.
The new clinic is the first of five slated to open in the coming weeks, said Assistant County Executive Officer David Mirrione.
The roughly 2,500 Pfizer vaccines slated to be provided are supplemental to doses coming out of the county’s supply, meaning the vaccines serve as a vital addition to the state’s allocation.
As more doses become available to combat COVID-19 locally, Supervisor Rodrigo Espinoza called on the county to ensure that its own vaccine distribution is equitable before criticizing the state.
Merced County must be deliberate in establishing vaccination centers accessibly throughout the county for all residents, he said.
Espinoza clarified that he doesn’t believe the county is at this point being inequitable, but that leadership must be mindful going forward.
Public Health has heard similar comments and concerns from both residents and health providers about dispersing vaccines equitably, said County Public Health Director Dr. Rebecca Nanyonjo-Kemp.
“We’re inching toward that, I think we can move a little quicker,” Nanyonjo-Kemp said.
Latest COVID-19 numbers, and what that means for schools
Although still reeling from a winter COVID-19 case spike, the state of the virus has begun to improve in Merced County. Active cases have decreased by about 43% since County Public Health’s COVID-19 update two weeks ago.
As of Monday, Merced County has counted 27,424 cases and 367 associated death’s since the pandemic’s start, according to County Public Health. Active cases tally 1,849.
“We’re headed in the right direction,” Sullivan said. “We’ve really come down a lot since Christmas…but that’s still way too high.”
Until cases further improve, many school districts will remain closed.
But county officials on Tuesday underscored that the decision to reopen is up to individual school districts.
County Public Health advises districts, but does not make the call to close or reopen schools. “That is not what is happening, just to be very direct,” said County Executive Officer Jim Brown.
When more schools were open during fall, districts ran into staffing shortages when personnel had to frequently quarantine due to COVID-19 exposure via community transmission — more so than transmission at schools, Sullivan said.
That underscored the importance of low case rates in the community overall in order for schools to return to in person, she said.
While it is impossible to predict the future of the pandemic, Sullivan said current trends hint that case rates may improve by March.
Also concerning to County Public Health officials are recent COVID-19 death demographics. Fatalities among residents age 64 or older have increased by 18% during the past 14 days, County Public Health data showed.
“Just in the past week, maybe last five or six days, we’re starting to see a lot of people who are in their 30s to early 40s who are experiencing sudden deaths, which is a large concern for us here,” Nanyonjo-Kemp said.
