R.I. reports 90% of people 60 and older vaccinated with first doses

RHODE ISLAND reported Tuesday that 90% of residents age 60 or older have had at least one shot of the COVID-19 vaccines./ R.I. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH

PROVIDENCE Rhode Island continues to make steady progress in vaccination across various age groups, with more than 90% of people age 60 and older having received at least one dose of a vaccine, according to the R.I. Department of Health.

Almost 50% of people age 16 to 39 have received at least one dose, said Tricia Washburn, chief of the RIDOH Office of Immunization.

“We are continuing to make progress among every age group,” Washburn said. “Amazing numbers, continue to grow.”

On Tuesday, the state marked a milestone in its vaccination effort: More than 1 million vaccine doses have now been administered.

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The state has started to pivot in its approach and is working to direct vaccine clinics to where people work and live and gather. If an employer or organization is interested in having a clinic on-site, the state encourages the owner or manager to fill out a community participant interest form on its website.

“We have teams of vaccinators who are able to go out and do pop-up clinics,” Washburn said.

The state also has started including primary care physicians and pediatricians in the COVID-19 vaccination effort. Professional offices should start to get their first vaccine supplies starting May 17. So far, 16 primary care providers have signed up.

In other news, the state is seeing greater success in vaccinating people who are Black, indigenous Latino or Hispanic.

Among people of color, the proportion of vaccines being taken is rising. Reaching this population with the vaccines has been an emphasis for health leaders because they had higher hospitalization and infection rates than the state’s white population.

So far in May, 19% of the vaccines administered in the state have gone to Hispanic or Latino individuals, which for the first time exceeds its proportion in the state’s population. The share of vaccines going to Black residents was 6%, matching for the first time the proportion of Black residents in Rhode Island.

Mary MacDonald is a staff writer at the PBN. Contact her at macdonald@pbn.com.

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