Low vaccine booster rates are now a key factor in COVID-19 deaths – and racial disparities in booster rates persist

As of August 2022, COVID-19 vaccination rates in Black and Hispanic people exceeded those of white Americans nationally, but only for the initial shots. FatCamera/E+ via Getty Images

More than 450 people are dying of COVID-19 in the U.S. each day as of late August 2022.

When COVID-19 vaccines first became available, public officials, community organizations and policymakers mobilized to get shots into arms. These efforts included significant investments in making vaccines accessible to Black, Hispanic, American Indian and Alaska Native populations. These groups experienced exceptionally high COVID-19 death rates early in the pandemic and had low initial vaccine rates.