ATLANTA — Georgia is approaching nearly 50% of its residents having received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, though it is still among the top 10 states with the lowest vaccination rates.  

Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee lag behind Georgia in the overall vaccination rate but vaccine racial disparities are narrowing in all four states.

As of Aug. 9, 48.69% or just over 5.01 million Georgians had been vaccinated with at least one dose. An estimated 4.1 million people, or 41%, had been fully vaccinated; white Georgia residents led Black Georgians by only four percentage points among the population that has received at least one dose; 42% of white and 38% of Black Georgians have received at least one dose of the vaccine.

As a percentage of its population, Asians have received the vaccine at drastically higher rates at about 78% and about 35% of Hispanics have received an initial dose of the vaccine.

In recent months, the number of COVID cases has began increasing, attributed by health officials to the more contagious delta variant.

Many of Georgia’s more rural counties, mostly in South Georgia, have seen some of the largest increases in positive COVID cases, according to a map on the Georgia Department of Public Health website. Some of the hot spot areas included in CNHI’s coverage areas include Colquitt, Thomas, Lowndes and Murray counties.  

Various communities and entities have begun incentivizing the vaccine in an effort to curb the spread of the virus. 

Moultrie, the Colquitt County seat, which is in the top 15 areas with the largest increase in number of cases in Georgia, has been giving a $500 bonus to city employees who get vaccinated. Colquitt County has a 29.58% vaccination rate.  

The vaccine incentive helped push the city employee vaccination rate from 25% to about 65% in just a couple of months, City Manager Peter Dillard said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended the vaccine for everyone 12 years and older to help prevent hospitalizations and severe sickness from the COVID-19 virus.

“I don’t believe in mandates but I believe any incentive you can put out there to encourage people is well worth it,” he said. “… With this recent COVID outbreak, it’s shown indications that we could’ve gotten really hurt if we hadn’t done something. It was either do something or face the trend that was scary looking.”

Dillard said the decision came nearly a month and a half ago when the city was down six employees at one time due COVID.  

“That’s what really set things in motion. All our people are essential service and we can’t shutdown,” Dillard said of the city’s estimated 200 employees. “That Monday morning, we put out a pretty strong encouragement to get people vaccinated; we had about 25 people respond immediately. A week later, we put the incentives in and it moved us pretty fast.”

Tift County Commissioner Melissa Hughes led a giveaway of 10 $20 gift cards as incentives.

In Murray County where just over 27% of the population have been fully vaccinated, the local health department is offering a $10 Walmart gift card for each dose of the COVID-19 vaccine administered at the Murray County Health Department; for the single dose J&J vaccine, two $10 gift cards will be given while supplies last, the health district stated.  

Among top 10 states with the lowest vaccination rates, eight of them are Southern states, including Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi and Alabama, which has the lowest in the country.   

Alabama has a 34.9% vaccination rate, with only 1.7 million people being fully vaccinated.  

Among vaccinated residents, Black and white populations are still comparable with 34.4% of Blacks and 33.7% of white people having received a dose of the vaccine. Just over 55.4% of the Asian population has received the vaccine in Alabama.  

While there are no known government-funded incentives for getting the vaccine, Wallace State Community College in Alabama’s Cullman County is paying its students $150 to get the vaccine, funded with federal Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds. 

Students receiving the vaccine are also entered into a drawing in which five students will be selected to win $1,000 each. Cullman County falls slightly behind the state’s vaccination rate at 33.4%.  

In a push to increase the state’s vaccination rate by 20% by Labor Day, Sept. 6, a statewide vaccination collaborative initiative “We Can Do This Alabama” has encouraged Alabama’s mayors to sign up for its “We Can Do This Alabama Mayors’ Challenge.”

According to a prepared statement from the group, more than 30% of the state’s mayors have signed up to participate to and actively promote the COVID-19 vaccine in their communities.

“With COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations dramatically increasing in our state, we are calling on everyone in a leadership position to help us fight this virus,” Dr. Donald Williamson, president of the Alabama Hospital Association, said speaking on behalf of the We Can Do This Alabama Coalition in the statement. “At this point, it is about sharing information on a personal level, encouraging those with hesitation to talk with their doctor and other vaccinated friends and family members. We know that our mayors are trusted and respected in their communities and we are extremely grateful for those who are stepping up to help.”

Health data shows Mississippi with 35.2% of its population being fully vaccinated and nearly 40% of Tennessee’s population has been fully vaccinated. Similar to Georgia and Alabama, margins are near identical among the vaccinated, with 39% of white residents and 40% of Black residents in Mississippi having received at least one dose of the vaccine.