Working Paper: NBER ID: w28835
Authors: Judith A. Chevalier; Jason L. Schwartz; Yihua Su; Kevin R. Williams
Abstract: As countries transition from facing COVID-19 vaccine supply shortfalls to requiring novel strategies to facilitate vaccination, modern retail chains—often designed and located to target particular demographic groups—are a potential vaccine delivery vehicle. Using geospatial data, we quantify the proximity to vaccines created by a U.S. federal program that distributes vaccines to commercial retail pharmacies. We then quantify the impact of a proposal to provide vaccines at Dollar General, a low-priced general merchandise retailer. We show that adding Dollar General to the federal program would substantially decrease the distance to vaccine sites for low-income and minority U.S. households.
Keywords: COVID-19; Vaccine Distribution; Retail Pharmacies; Low-Income Households; Minority Populations
JEL Codes: I14; I18; L81; R12
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Federal retail pharmacy program (L87) | Dollar General as vaccination site (I19) |
| Dollar General as vaccination site (I19) | Accessibility for low-income households (R21) |
| Federal retail pharmacy program (L87) | Accessibility for low-income households (R21) |