The 4-CT Card

Connecticut has been a nationwide leader in vaccinating its residents. However, that success has not been true for all residents. Black and Hispanic residents are vaccinated at about half the rate of their White counterparts.  Misinformation, lack of information, suspicion, and lack of access to vaccination sites are all factors that contribute to the low rate of vaccination. 4-CT acted as a convener of the voices, helping our partners access the ear of the state to voice these concerns and share ideas to help solve this issue.

4-CT piloted two programs in the area of Vaccine Equity:

1 .The first was a program in which we distributed 4-CT cards to a group of volunteer of local outreach workers in New Haven. These funds allowed them to take time off work and canvas their local neighborhoods to help residents overcome whichever barrier was dissuading them from getting the vaccine. This program relied on a trusted messenger model, in that the people delivering this information were community members and people like them. The 4-CT cards allowed for community members to participate in this program, whereas without the cards, they would have been unable to take off work.

2. The second program was to fund the outreach programs of our partners. Grants were provided to cover the cost of increased outreach (personnel, educational materials) and partner’s were provided 4-CT cards to aid target populations overcome structural and cultural barriers, including transportation, cost of daycare and others. Over $40,000 has been distributed through 4-CT cards across almost 60 zip codes in CT through the Vaccine Equity 4-CT Cards.