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Cited by 178Vaccine Coverage and HesitancyLegal, Health, Environmental and COVID-19 ChallengesSARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 Research

Inequality in the distribution of Covid-19 vaccine: a systematic review

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Bayati, Mohsen, Noroozi, Rayehe, Ghanbari-Jahromi, Mohadeseh, Jalali, Faride Sadat·2022·International Journal for Equity in Health
DOI 10.1186/s12939-022-01729-xPMC PMC9425802
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Abstract

Background: The equality in the distribution of vaccines between and within countries along with follow sanitation tips and observe social distance, are effective strategies to rid the world of COVID-19 pandemic. Inequality in the distribution of COVID-19 vaccine, in addition to causing inequity to the population health, has a significant impact on the process of economic recovery. Methods: All published original papers on the inequality of Covid-19 vaccine distribution and the factors affecting it were searched in PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and ProQuest databases between December 2020 to 30 May 2022. Selection of articles, extraction of their data and qualitative assessment (by STROBE) were performed by two researchers separately. Data graphing form was used to extract detailed data from each study and then, the collected data were classified. Results: A total of 4623 articles were evaluated. After removing duplicates and screening the title, abstract and full text of articles, 22 articles were selected and entered into the study. Fifteen (68.17%) studies were conducted in the United States, three (13.64%) in Europe, three (13.64%) in Asia and one (6.66%) in Oceania. Factors affecting the inequality in the distribution of COVID-19 vaccine were classified into macro and micro levels determinants. Conclusion: Macro determinants of inequality in the Covid-19 vaccine distribution were consisted of economic (stability and country’s economic status, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, financial support and human development index), infrastructure and health system (appropriate information system, functional cold chains in vaccine transport, transport infrastructure, medical and non-medical facilities per capita, healthcare access and quality), legal and politics (vaccination allocation rules, health policies, political ideology and racial bias), and epidemiologic and demographic factors (Covid-19 incidence and deaths rate, life expectancy, vulnerability to Covid-19, working in medical setting, comorbidities, social vulnerability, incarceration and education index). Moreover, micro/ individual level factors were included in economic (household’s income, home ownership, employment, poverty, access to healthy food and residency in the deprived areas) and demographic and social characteristics (sex, age, race, ethnic, religion, disability, location (urban/rural) and insurance coverage).

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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Bayati, M., Noroozi, R., Ghanbari-Jahromi, M., & Jalali, F. S.
Affiliations
Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (IR)
Corresponding author
Jalali, Faride Sadat
ORCID
Venue
International Journal for Equity in Health
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2022-08-30
Volume
21
Issue
1
Pages
122-122
ISSN
1475-9276 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1186/s12939-022-01729-x
PMC
PMC9425802
OpenAlex
W4293576567
Cited by
178
References
2
Citations by year
2026: 12 · 2025: 28 · 2024: 57 · 2023: 75 · 2022: 6
FWCI
5.75
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • International Journal for Equity in Health (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (24984)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Health › Vaccine Coverage and Hesitancy
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Legal, Health, Environmental and COVID-19 Challenges
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 Research
Keywords
COVID-19 vaccine distribution, vaccine inequity, health equity, socioeconomic factors, health system infrastructure, cold chain, racial and ethnic disparities, social vulnerability, household income, health insurance coverage, urban-rural disparities
MeSH terms
COVID-19, COVID-19 Vaccines, Asia, Demography, Europe, Humans, Socioeconomic Factors, United States, Oceania, Healthcare Disparities

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