Denver will deploy a three-pronged vaccine distribution approach with city leaders stressing the importance of equity.

Vaccine equity has long been a stated priority for Mayor Michael Hancock, who said at a press conference Thursday that Denver would be establishing permanent vaccine clinics in underserved areas. Data analyzed by the Gazette last week, along with more stats described by city officials, indicated that white, 70-and-older residents had received more than their proportionate share of vaccines. The Gazette’s data indicated those white residents were more than two and a half times as likely as their Hispanic peers to have been vaccinated.

The three-pronged approach will include not only the permanent vaccine sites, but partnerships with community health providers and the deployment of mobile vaccine teams to further reach underserved populations. Hancock stressed it wasn’t a priority list – Denver is still beholden to state rules on that front – but a deployment strategy.

Some fixed sites have already been identified, most of which will open March 7. They are:

• Montbello Rec Center
• Swansea/Project Angel Heart
• Barnum Rec Center
• MLK Rec Center
• Bear Valley Library
• Montbello High School

Concerns about equity and state distribution have prompted Hancock to twice ask the White House to give Denver and other major cities their own vaccine shipments, rather than funneling doses through the state. He had previously asked the state to let Denver vaccinate those experiencing homelessness, ahead of their established place in the queue. That request that was rejected by Gov. Jared Polis.

That rejection was followed by Hancock writing the federal government’s COVID czar to reiterate his request for direct shipments.

Hancock said he had been contacted by the White House and was planning on talking with officials there. 

Though Hancock seeks latitude on vaccines, he and Denver are still beholden to state COVID restrictions. Denver came tantalizingly close to moving into the second-loosest level of restrictions; it had to maintain its COVID cases at a certain level for a week. The city made it six days before faltering.

That means, for now, that restrictions remain on capacity on most publicly facing businesses. It also means that indoor sporting events are still closed, said Bob McDonald, the head of Denver’s Department of Public Health and Environment. 

Denver has filed a handful of variances, he said, which are state-approved requests to loosen certain restrictions in certain places. One was made by Visit Denver, which wants to open up the convention center. Red Rocks and other venues have also both filed requests for looser restrictions.

Still, despite Denver’s narrow miss, Hancock remained upbeat about the county’s prospects. He predicted it would be in level blue shortly and that “we could be in for additional capacity for local businesses very soon.”