We know that older adults, particularly older adults of color and residents of long-term care facilities, have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and have experienced higher mortality rates than the general population. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that residents of long-term care facilities be next in line to receive the vaccine, after health care personnel. Adults age 75 and older are targeted to receive the vaccine in the next phase, along with essential workers.
Adults older than age 75 who live in the community, especially older people of color, are less likely to drive and frequently experience challenges obtaining transportation when seeking essential services, including health care and grocery shopping. Given the self-quarantine of this population during the pandemic, these transportation disparities have been less visible over the past several months. We know, however, that many transportation providers have continued to serve older adults and people with disabilities by helping with the delivery of food and medicines in their communities. Once again, we expect that transportation providers will be on the front lines in helping these vulnerable populations get to coronavirus immunization sites.
NADTC would like to know how these efforts are working in your community. Specifically, we want to know how transportation providers are working to help older adults and people with disabilities get to sites where the vaccine is provided, as well as the barriers and challenges they encounter in meeting this critical need. NADTC intends to collect this information and make it available on our website to facilitate sharing lessons learned and creative approaches to address this enormous challenge.
Please send us an email at [email protected] or call our toll-free number at 866-983-3222 with information about your experiences.
