BOSTON, MA – Vaccine Equity Now! Coalition Co-Chairs Dr. Atyia Martin of the Black Boston COVID-19 Coalition, Eva Millona of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, and Carlene Pavlos of the Massachusetts Public Health Association today issued the following statement in response to Governor Baker’s announcement that Massachusetts will be receiving an additional 100,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine in the next week.

“The additional supply of 100,000 Johnson & Johnson doses is a major, positive development for Massachusetts’ vaccine rollout that will help increase access to these lifesaving shots. However, we urge the Governor to center equity in his allocation of the doses. Governor Baker should use this as an opportunity to follow through on his previous commitments and allocate at least 20% of these doses to Massachusetts’ hardest hit communities. Since the Johnson & Johnson vaccine only requires one shot, these doses will be particularly impactful for people in our communities who have limited mobility or are homebound – particularly BIPOC and immigrant residents that have been vaccinated at lower rates than white residents.

Read the full release.