Washington, DC, August 15, 2024 — The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), the voice of the over 3,300 local health departments across the country, has awarded $2,655,000 to 25 communities to increase immunization uptake through strategic community partnerships. The selected sites will strengthen vaccination efforts to align with vaccination coverage recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for COVID-19, influenza, and routine childhood and adult vaccinations.

NACCHO’s 2023 Immunization Profile Study report found a 46% increase in the proportion of local health departments reporting vaccine hesitancy in their community as a barrier, compared to 2017, with 82% citing this as a challenge to immunization activities. These funding awards aim to bridge that gap through engagement with key community-based partners to improve understanding, access, and uptake of immunizations services via three new projects:

Strengthening Vaccine Confidence and Uptake Among Adolescents and Their Families Through Community Partnerships focuses on enhancing local health departments’ capabilities to boost vaccination uptake and address disparities in COVID-19 and routine vaccination coverage among adolescents and their families. NACCHO is supporting five local health departments to identify and overcome barriers to vaccination, including community stakeholders—such as teens and influential figures—in promoting factual vaccine messaging tailored to adolescents and parents. This work will deliver education and vaccinations at the grassroots level and foster relationships among vaccine providers and the community to bolster confidence, access, and uptake opportunities.

Improving Vaccine Access, Education, and Outreach Through Faith-Based Partnerships supports local health departments’ capacities in enhancing COVID-19 and routine vaccine confidence, education, and access through collaborations with faith-based organizations. A total of six local health departments are partnering with NACCHO to develop and implement strategies alongside faith-based partners to understand factors influencing vaccine hesitancy, engage with community stakeholders in supporting vaccine messaging, provide education and vaccine services at the community level, and establish connections between the faith-based community and vaccine providers to strengthen confidence and access opportunities.

Lastly, the Expanding Vaccination Coverage Through Partnerships with Early Care and Education Programs will forge sustainable partnerships between 14 local health departments and early care and education programs (e.g., daycares) to increase COVID-19 vaccines and other vaccines recommended for children aged 0 to 5 years by the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). Through this initiative, 14 awardees are focused on expanding COVID-19 and other ACIP-recommended vaccine access for children through the creation and implementation of communication and marketing campaigns specifically tailored for parents of children aged 0-5.

The 25 awardees are:

Strengthening Vaccine Confidence and Uptake Among Adolescents and Their Families Through Community Partnerships:

Cass County Health Department, Illinois ($75,000)

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, California ($75,000)

Putnam County Health Department, West Virginia ($75,000)

Panhandle Public Health District, Nebraska ($75,000)

St. Mary’s County Health Department, Maryland ($75,000)

Improving Vaccine Access, Education, and Outreach Through Faith-Based Partnerships:

Durham County Health Department, North Carolina ($100,000)

Grant County (IMPACT Ulyssess, Inc.), Kansas ($100,000)

Mobile County Health Department, Alabama ($100,000)

Monongalia County Health Department, West Virginia ($100,000)

Rockland County Health Department, New York ($100,000)

Trumbull County Health Department, Ohio ($100,000)

Expanding Vaccination Coverage Through Partnerships with Early Care and Education Programs:

Adams County Health Department, Illinois ($120,000)

Bear River Health Department, Utah ($120,000)

Brazos County Health Department, Texas ($120,000)

Charles County Department of Health, Maryland ($120,000)

Cuyahoga County Board of Health, Ohio ($120,000)

Dallas County Health and Human Services, Texas ($120,000)

Harris County Public Health, Texas ($120,000)

Hill County Health Department, Montana ($120,000)

Linn County Public Health, Iowa ($120,000)

Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services, California ($120,00)

Mecklenburg County Health Department, North Carolina ($120,000)

New Philadelphia City Health Department, Ohio ($120,000)

Niagara County Department of Health, New York ($120,000)

Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, Washington ($120,000)

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About NACCHO

The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) represents the over 3,300 local governmental health departments across the country. These city, county, metropolitan, district, and tribal departments work every day to protect and promote health and well-being for all people in their communities. For more information, visit www.naccho.org.