The Vaccine Equity Cooperative was created to usher in new level of collaboration, partnership, resources, and knowledge sharing to advance racial health equity.
THE CHALLENGE
- The trust gap: Historic concerns, new racial tensions, systemic racism, and heightened disparities have further eroded public trust in a safe, effective, and accessible COVID-19 vaccine among hardest hit communities of color.
- The leadership gap: A multitude of public/private players are engaged in vaccine strategy, but no single group has emerged to assume responsibility for a national vaccine supply and demand strategy or consistent national movement on these topics.
- The resource gap: States face a significant resource gap for distribution and communication around a COVID-19 vaccine.
THE OPPORTUNITY
- Ideas about how we prioritize community health, public safety, and public trust that previously seemed radical are now moving toward the mainstream.
- Policy actors – including legislators and advocacy groups – now have a broader latitude to shift the narrative and change how health works in communities.
- The future of public health is local, making it a national imperative to effectively and authentically engage local communities, bolster community-led solutions, and bring together multiple stakeholders committed to working collaboratively to solve our nation’s complex health and equity issues.
A Collaborative Approach To Equity-Oriented Vaccine Demand
We can thoughtfully and authentically engaging communities to acknowledge and address the root causes of vaccine hesitancy and increase vaccine acceptance and access. Five key groups have joined forces to launch a comprehensive, two-year national vaccine equity campaign.
A unified and collaborative approach to build vaccine confidence, this initiative can further support the rebuilding of public trust necessary to address long-term disparities and prepare for future crises. Our work across four strategic focus areas builds a learning engine and strategic communications arm of the demand-side of the vaccine equity ecosystem.
Coordinate research, tools and working groups
Develop, design and/or analyze programs and practices focused on essential resources
Influence, education and messaging
Build and facilitate formal and informal, local and national networks to further racial health equity across the U.S.
Convene, connect and collaborate
Improve quality and learn from projects and initiatives across the U.S. to share both wins and failures
Advocate and build capacity
Develop, design and/or analyze programs and practices focused on essential resources
Organizing Members
Each organization is deeply committed to racial health equity and actively engaged in vaccine supply and demand working groups. Together, we aim to spark a national campaign and platform that is flexible enough to encompass different solutions and stakeholders, yet specific enough to translate ideas into action.
Health Leads is an innovation hub that unearths and addresses the deep societal roots of racial inequity that impact health and creating smarter, more equitable, community-centric design processes in public health and essential needs. Health Leads has launched a two-year (2020-2022) Respond and Rebuild Strategy which helps communities meet urgent resource demands worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic today, while also redesigning and rebuilding the systems necessary for a more equitable and crisis-resilient future.
The Community Health Acceleration Partnership (CHAP) works to build stronger, more effective community-health systems through catalytic investments and strategic engagement. CHAP operates with speed and flexibility, focusing on vulnerable and underserved populations worldwide. Through our investors and philanthropic partners, CHAP has long-standing connections with the United Nations, World Health Organization, Rockefeller Foundation, and other leading groups.
The National Association of Community Health Workers (NACHW) unifies the voices of community health workers and strengthens the profession’s capacity to promote healthy communities. NACHW convenes community health workers (CHWs) in national forums and regional work groups to contribute to organizational development planning and direction. Our vision is a movement of community health workers united nationally to support communities in achieving health, equity, and social justice.
The Native Ways Federation (NWF) was founded in 2006 by a group of seven national Native-led nonprofit organizations to activate and expand informed giving to nonprofits in Indian Country through donor education and advocacy. The Native Ways Federation is committed to advocating for increased and more effective philanthropic support across Indian Country – from the perspective of those who are doing the work, particularly Native-led non-profits.
Partners In Health (PIH) is a social justice organization that responds to the moral imperative to provide high-quality health care globally to those who need it most. From Newark, NJ, to Navajo Nation, PIH has been working with public health departments and community partners around the United States to strengthen the public health response against COVID-19.
CONVINCE USA is part of a broad multi-sector initiative to prepare a “vaccine literate” public to sustain ”community immunity” against COVID-19. CONVINCE USA conducts public opinion research and education projects with CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy and works with Business Partners to CONVINCE and the US Council for International Business Foundation to promote vaccine awareness and acceptance in collaboration with employers and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) globally.
JOIN US
So many organizations and individuals have resources to offer to this effort. Support our work to build collaborative, community-anchored, and equity-driven solutions that strengthen public trust and enable access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines.