WASHINGTON — Coronavirus vaccine coverage is substantially higher in urban areas across the country than in rural communities, where hesitancy remains a “major barrier” for public health officials, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found in a new study published Tuesday.
The CDC examined county-level vaccination data across all 50 states from December through early April, finding that 38.9% of residents in rural counties had received at least one vaccine dose, compared with 45.7% in urban counties.
Rural residents were also more likely to have traveled outside of their county to get a vaccine dose.