Huang, Wenxi, Inmaculada Hernandez, Shangbin Tang, Sean Dickson, Lucas A Berenbrok, and Jingchuan Guo. 2023. “Association Between Distance to Community Health Care Facilities and COVID-19-Related Mortality across U.S. Counties in the COVID-19-Vaccine Era.”. BMC Research Notes 16 (1): 96.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: COVID-19 has caused tremendous damage to U.S. public health, but COVID vaccines can effectively reduce the risk of COVID-19 infections and related mortality. Our study aimed to quantify the association between proximity to a community healthcare facility and COVID-19 related mortality after COVID vaccines became publicly available and explore how this association varied across racial and ethnic groups.
RESULTS: Residents living farther from a facility had higher COVID-19-related mortality across U.S. counties. This increased mortality incidence associated with longer distances was particularly pronounced in counties with higher proportions of Black and Hispanic populations.