COVID-19: Over 15.0 Million Vaccines Have Been Distributed to Maryland. This is How Many the State Has Actually Given Out

It has now been 63 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 March 1, the U.S. has sent 690,435,045 doses of the vaccine across the country — equivalent to 210.3% of the U.S. population.

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. The distribution of the vaccine is based on the size of the adult population in every state, which — according to some experts — can create inequities in states where the spread of COVID-19 is worse and a larger share of the population is at risk.

Maryland has received a total of 15,010,810 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine as of March 1. Adjusted for population, Maryland has received 248,289.9 vaccines per 100,000 residents — more than the national average of 210,344.9 vaccines per 100,000 Americans and the 2nd most of any state.

While Maryland has so far received more vaccines per capita than the nation as a whole, the state has a lesser need for vaccines than the rest of the country. As of March 1, there were 16,572.0 confirmed cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 residents in Maryland — lower than the national rate of 23,827.9 cases per 100,000 Americans and the third lowest of all 50 states.

While the federal government distributes vaccines to states, it is up to state governments to administer the vaccine — creating variations in both the percentage of vaccines that have been administered and the percentage of the population that has been vaccinated. In Maryland, 76.8% of allocated vaccines have been administered to residents, lower than the national average of 80.1% and the 15th smallest share of all states.

The administered vaccines amount to 190.6% of the state population, greater than the 168.6% national figure and the eighth 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, 64.4% 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 Maryland, 57.3% 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 seventh smallest share of any state. The most common reason cited for not wanting a vaccine was that they were planning to wait and see if it is safe. Other commonly cited reasons include being concerned about possible side effects, not trusting COVID-19 vaccines, and not knowing if the vaccine will work.

To determine the states getting the most and least vaccines from the federal government, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. States were ranked based on the number of vaccines administered as of March 1 per 100,000 residents. Vaccine counts were adjusted for population using one-year data from the Census Bureau’s 2019 American Community Survey. Data on confirmed COVID-19 cases as of March 1 came from various state and local health departments and were adjusted for population using 2019 ACS data. Data on the percentage of adults who probably will not 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 December 29, 2021 to January 10, 2022.

These are all the counties in Maryland where COVID-19 is slowing (and where it’s still getting worse).