White people over 80 are being vaccinated at twice the rate of black people in England

The gap is widening

White people over the age of 80 are being vaccinated at a much higher rate than non-white people in England, a new academic study shows. 42.5 per cent of elderly white people in England had received their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine as of January 13, compared to just 20.5 per cent of elderly black people and 29.5 per cent of South Asian people. And that gap is expected to get wider, with the numbers increasing at a higher rate among young people than among black people. There is also a disparity between vaccination rates in deprived areas and better off neighbourhoods. The vaccination rate among elderly people in the most deprived areas is just 37.9 per cent, but it rises to 44.7 per cent in the least deprived areas of England. The study suggests the reasons behind this disparity between racial groups is due to a variety of factors, one being systemic barriers to healthcare access, as well as hesitancy to get the jab. A study conducted across the UK earlier this month found that hesitancy to receive the vaccine was higher among women, younger people and less educated people. It also found that vaccine hesitancy was particularly high in Black (71.8 per cent), Pakistani/Bangladeshi (42.3 per cent), Mixed (32.4 per cent) and non-UK/Irish White (26.4 per cent) ethnic groups. John Burn-Murdoch of the Financial Times tweeted: "These inequalities are especially concerning given the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on ethnic minority groups. The very groups that are most at risk from the disease, are thus far the least likely to have received protection." https://twitter.com/jburnmurdoch/status/1354535506349056011