2021-10-02

It has now been 41 weeks since the first shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine were sent out to states, kicking off the largest vaccination campaign in human history. As of September 30, 474,245,945 doses of the vaccine have been sent out across the country — equivalent to 144.5% of the U.S. population.

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While the initial distribution of the vaccine took longer than federal projections had indicated, in recent months the U.S. has made great leaps in the worldwide race to administer vaccinations — and some states are faring far better than others. Under the current system, led by the White House COVID-19 Response Team, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sends states limited shipments of the vaccine as well as funding and tasks them with distributing the vaccine in accordance with relatively loose federal guidelines.

Each state has developed its own rollout plan, prioritizing different age groups and classes of essential workers. The mix of policies and logistical challenges across the country has led to wide variations across states in both the percentage of vaccines that have been administered and the percentage of the population that has been vaccinated.

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In Illinois, 85.8% of allocated vaccines have been administered to residents as of September 30, greater than the national average of 82.8% and the 11th largest share of all states.

The administered doses amount to 120.9% of the state population, in line with the 119.7% national figure and the 20th largest share of all states.

While a majority of Americans remain unvaccinated due to a lack of supply, there are some who have no plans to receive a vaccine at all. According to a survey from the U.S. Census Bureau, 59.2% of U.S. adults 18 and over who have not yet received the vaccine will either probably not or definitely not get a COVID-19 vaccine in the future. In Illinois, 59.2% of adults who have not yet received the vaccine report that they will probably not or definitely not get a vaccine in the future, the 18th smallest share of any state. The most common reason cited for not wanting a vaccine is being concerned about possible side effects. Other commonly cited reasons include that they were planning to wait and see if it is safe, not trusting COVID-19 vaccines, and not trusting the government.

To determine how states are doing with the vaccine rollout, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. States were ranked based on the number of vaccines administered within a state as a percentage of the number of vaccines distributed to that state by the federal government as of September 30. Data on confirmed COVID-19 cases as of September 30 came from various state and local health departments and were adjusted for population using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2019 American Community Survey. Data on the percentage of adults who probably or definitely will not get a COVID-19 vaccine and their reasons for not getting one came from the Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey, conducted from August 18, 2021 to August 30, 2021.