Shreveport Region Near Top In State For Vaccination Rate

A new report from The Advocate shows that some regions in Louisiana are getting the public vaccinated faster than others.

The information is taken form the Louisiana Department of Health, and it shows that residents in the New Orleans area are being vaccinated at a higher than other parts of the state. In Region 1, the vaccination rate is 7.38%, while in Region 6 (Central Louisiana) the rate is only 3.95%.

For the Shreveport and Bossier City area, Region 7, the vaccination rate is 5.98%. That is the third best rate in the state. Here are the regions ranked based on vaccination rates:

Region 1 - 7.38%
Region 9 - 6.21%
Region 7 - 5.98%
Region 3 - 5.67%
Region 8 - 5.63%
Region 2 - 5.24%
Region 4 - 4.63%
Region 6 - 3.95%
Region 5 - 3.07%

These discrepancias in vaccinations rates are being called "inequities" by some. The Advocate has a statement from Louisiana State Health Officer Dr. Joseph Kanter on possible inequities, he says:

“If there are some inequities in what the regions receive, we will address that over the next couple weeks. We should all see those discrepancies get less and less each week going forward.”

The report from The Advocate suggests that hospital access could be the reason for the different rates. But it should be pointed out that Region 1 is a full percentage point ahead of the next highest rate, and almost 1.5% higher than Region 7, which might be a little more of a difference than hospital access could provide.