WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden promised that COVID-19 vaccine distribution would be equitable, but health officials realized days into the new administration that they had a problem — the race and ethnicity of half the people who received the shot during the first month was not known.
They also learned that a small percentage of those who had been vaccinated were recorded as Black — a demographic group disproportionately affected by the coronavirus.
Working with states that have a patchwork of laws on the collection and reporting of demographic data, the administration says that information on race and ethnicity has improved.
