It has now been 40 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 23, 469,561,625 doses of the vaccine have been sent out across the country — equivalent to 143.1% 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.
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.
In South Dakota, 81.4% of allocated vaccines have been administered to residents as of September 23, in line with the national average of 82.6% and the 24th smallest share of all states.
The administered doses amount to 106.5% of the state population, lower than the 118.2% national figure and the 22nd smallest 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 South Dakota, 64.3% 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 23rd largest 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 believing they don’t need a vaccine.
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 23. Data on confirmed COVID-19 cases as of September 23 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.
| Rank | State | Vaccines distributed from federal gov’t | Vaccines administered in state | Pct. of vaccines administered | Vaccines administered as % of pop. | COVID-19 cases per 100,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | West Virginia | 2,954,885 | 1,537,865 | 52.0% | 85.8% | 12,598 |
| 49 | Alabama | 6,589,940 | 4,441,961 | 67.4% | 90.6% | 15,878 |
| 48 | Idaho | 2,169,090 | 1,538,904 | 70.9% | 86.1% | 13,732 |
| 47 | Mississippi | 3,768,235 | 2,730,863 | 72.5% | 91.8% | 16,106 |
| 46 | Georgia | 14,327,025 | 10,504,413 | 73.3% | 98.9% | 14,542 |
| 45 | Arkansas | 3,975,680 | 2,974,638 | 74.8% | 98.6% | 16,133 |
| 44 | Alaska | 1,032,665 | 775,149 | 75.1% | 106.0% | 13,518 |
| 43 | South Carolina | 6,748,995 | 5,163,049 | 76.5% | 100.3% | 16,170 |
| 42 | Delaware | 1,550,285 | 1,188,342 | 76.7% | 122.0% | 13,244 |
| 41 | Texas | 41,381,005 | 32,007,401 | 77.3% | 110.4% | 13,584 |
| 40 | Oregon | 6,657,075 | 5,173,200 | 77.7% | 122.7% | 7,465 |
| 39 | Louisiana | 5,716,600 | 4,450,410 | 77.9% | 95.7% | 15,705 |
| 38 | North Carolina | 14,207,030 | 11,094,325 | 78.1% | 105.8% | 12,878 |
| 37 | Michigan | 13,388,650 | 10,505,445 | 78.5% | 105.2% | 11,228 |
| 36 | Wyoming | 648,605 | 512,233 | 79.0% | 88.5% | 14,868 |
| 35 | Maryland | 9,883,990 | 7,877,281 | 79.7% | 130.3% | 8,640 |
| 34 | Kansas | 3,820,035 | 3,045,775 | 79.7% | 104.5% | 13,708 |
| 33 | Tennessee | 8,456,840 | 6,755,410 | 79.9% | 98.9% | 17,435 |
| 32 | Missouri | 7,762,035 | 6,204,731 | 79.9% | 101.1% | 13,131 |
| 31 | North Dakota | 913,500 | 731,561 | 80.1% | 96.0% | 16,702 |
| 30 | Hawaii | 2,293,370 | 1,852,930 | 80.8% | 130.9% | 5,215 |
| 29 | Ohio | 14,756,015 | 11,937,353 | 80.9% | 102.1% | 11,626 |
| 28 | Indiana | 8,196,950 | 6,659,955 | 81.2% | 98.9% | 13,921 |
| 27 | South Dakota | 1,157,815 | 942,416 | 81.4% | 106.5% | 15,954 |
| 26 | New Hampshire | 2,129,220 | 1,734,548 | 81.5% | 127.6% | 8,503 |
| 25 | Florida | 32,358,725 | 26,392,751 | 81.6% | 122.9% | 16,423 |
| 24 | Montana | 1,310,195 | 1,074,405 | 82.0% | 100.5% | 13,334 |
| 23 | New Jersey | 13,859,525 | 11,400,181 | 82.3% | 128.3% | 12,801 |
| 22 | Oklahoma | 4,948,360 | 4,080,662 | 82.5% | 103.1% | 15,183 |
| 21 | Iowa | 4,137,915 | 3,416,694 | 82.6% | 108.3% | 13,967 |
| 20 | Arizona | 9,778,140 | 8,119,649 | 83.0% | 111.6% | 14,711 |
| 19 | Pennsylvania | 19,061,995 | 16,014,184 | 84.0% | 125.1% | 10,841 |
| 18 | Washington | 11,211,425 | 9,461,298 | 84.4% | 124.2% | 8,287 |
| 17 | Nevada | 3,959,290 | 3,353,696 | 84.7% | 108.9% | 13,426 |
| 16 | Virginia | 12,637,845 | 10,723,697 | 84.9% | 125.6% | 9,879 |
| 15 | Maine | 2,116,660 | 1,802,929 | 85.2% | 134.1% | 6,335 |
| 14 | Rhode Island | 1,691,975 | 1,444,307 | 85.4% | 136.3% | 16,018 |
| 13 | Kentucky | 5,667,585 | 4,840,983 | 85.4% | 108.4% | 14,808 |
| 12 | Illinois | 17,726,765 | 15,149,254 | 85.5% | 119.6% | 12,640 |
| 11 | Nebraska | 2,503,380 | 2,144,532 | 85.7% | 110.9% | 13,497 |
| 10 | Minnesota | 7,688,700 | 6,588,723 | 85.7% | 116.8% | 12,242 |
| 9 | Utah | 3,956,790 | 3,391,571 | 85.7% | 105.8% | 15,462 |
| 8 | California | 57,988,065 | 50,100,113 | 86.4% | 126.8% | 11,713 |
| 7 | Vermont | 1,027,460 | 891,319 | 86.7% | 142.8% | 4,784 |
| 6 | Colorado | 8,082,735 | 7,086,638 | 87.7% | 123.1% | 11,378 |
| 5 | New York | 29,137,115 | 25,547,966 | 87.7% | 131.3% | 12,247 |
| 4 | Connecticut | 5,575,055 | 4,980,413 | 89.3% | 139.7% | 10,832 |
| 3 | Massachusetts | 10,870,010 | 9,712,378 | 89.4% | 140.9% | 11,562 |
| 2 | Wisconsin | 7,300,995 | 6,711,667 | 91.9% | 115.3% | 13,462 |
| 1 | New Mexico | 2,912,585 | 2,750,095 | 94.4% | 131.2% | 11,762 |
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