Boost of Equity

Austin City Council pushes for ‘equitable and efficient’ COVID-19 booster shot plan

COVID-19 vaccine man getting shot doctor

The resolution calls for improvement in how Austin distributes COVID-19 vaccine boosters.

WPA Pool / Getty Images

KVUE — On Thursday, August 26, the Austin City Council unanimously approved a resolution that calls on City staff to come up with a “comprehensive COVID-19 booster shot strategy that is both equitable and efficient.”

The vote comes after President Joe Biden announced on August 18 a booster shot rollout, which is scheduled to begin on September 20.

Pfizer announced Wednesday that it had begun the approval process for a third booster shot of the vaccine for people 16 and older. The company said it expects that application to be compete by the end of this week. Moderna also announced Wednesday that it completed the application process to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for full approval of its COVID-19 vaccine.

“As recommended booster shots quickly approach, this policy ensures we have a targeted strategy in place that takes into account all of the lessons learned from the initial vaccine rollout,” said Austin City Council member Vanessa Fuentes. “This needs to go beyond fixing the technical issues. We need a plan that is readily available to Austinites laying out how we’re going to get booster shots in arms while still addressing low vaccination rates, especially in our communities of color.”

The council’s resolution calls for a booster rollout plan that:

Is equitable.
Builds on lessons learned.
Accounts for the need to address ongoing vaccine access issues affecting communities most impacted by COVID-19.
Builds on the City’s recent commitment to increase its Community Health Worker staffing and improve health education.
Calls for a robust community engagement and communication strategy.

“This is a meaner, more aggressive form of the virus than we faced last summer,” said Austin Mayor Steve Adler. “It will require us to improve the distribution of these vaccine boosters while also continuing to encourage and incentivize the initial vaccine within at-risk communities.”

---

Continue reading this story and watch the video on KVUE.

city-news-roundup science health

share the road

Texas races to the bottom in new list of best states for cyclists

Photo by Justin Wallace on Unsplash

If you've ridden your bicycle in Austin, you already know how true this is.

In what will come as no surprise to cyclists around Austin, the state of Texas is not a good place for bicycle riding. According to a new report of the "Most Cycling-Friendly States in the U.S.," Texas comes in at No. 47 — meaning that only three other states are worse.

The report, from Philadelphia personal injury law firm KaplunMarx, examines all 50 states based on six metrics: Air quality index, the number of cyclist deaths per one million residents, bike routes per square mile, local government actions supporting cycling, federal funding for cycling projects, and bicycle laws.

Texas musters a mere 31 points out of 100 for its "cycling friendly score."

The most cycling-friendly state in the U.S.: Minnesota, which earned 84 points to claim the title.

According to the report's findings, there have been 15 local government actions per capita in Texas that integrate pedestrians and cyclists in transportation projects. Texas' has a 41 air quality index value, and there are approximately 1.2 bike routes per 1,000 square miles in the state.

On cyclist deaths, Texas does a little better, with three cyclist deaths per one million residents in Texas — about nine percent lower than the national average.

According to KaplunMarx founding partner Ted Kaplun, there is an average of 857 cyclist fatalities in the U.S. every year. He adds that every measure or community effort to improve cyclist-friendliness is beneficial for all Americans.

"It's crucial for all states to continually assess and enhance their cycling provisions, learning from both high-ranking peers and their own experiences," he says.

Top-ranking Minnesota has only one cyclist death per one million state residents. It also has about 27.2 bike routes per 1,000 square miles.

After Minnesota, the remaining top five best states for cyclists are Massachusetts (No. 2), Rhode Island (No. 3), Washington (No. 4), and Iowa (No. 5).

At the bottom of the list are Nevada (No. 48), Arizona (No. 49), and Utah (No. 50) — all of which performed far worse than Texas to be declared the three least cycling-friendly states.

The entire country still has areas for improvement when it comes to creating a safer environment for cyclists, regardless of where each state landed on the list, according to Kaplun.

"With over 53 million Americans riding bicycles regularly, the importance of cycling-friendly infrastructure and safety measures cannot be overstated," said Kaplun in the report. "This isn't just about rankings – it's about enhancing the quality of life, promoting sustainable transportation, and most crucially, saving lives."

texas reports rankings cyclists