Coronavirus Watch: Vaccine rollouts reveal racial disparities

Nearly two months after the U.S. began rolling out COVID-19 vaccine, about 10.2% of people have received at least one vaccine shot, and about 3.2% have received both doses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Available data shows that people of color are getting vaccinated at lower rates.

A Paste BN analysis of data from Chicago and the U.S. Census Bureau found that, in the city, the vaccination rate in majority-Black or Latino zip codes averaged 5% while majority-white zip codes averaged 13%. The data shows similar trends in Washington, D.C., and Austin, Texas. Read more.

It's Friday, and this is the Coronavirus Watch from the Paste BN Network. Here's more news that you need to know:

• President Joe Biden on Thursday announced completion of a deal to purchase an additional 200 million vaccine doses, fulfilling an agreement he outlined two weeks ago. "We’ve now purchased enough vaccine supplies to vaccinate all Americans," Biden said during a visit to the National Institutes of Health.
• The severity of COVID-19 symptoms suffered by President Donald Trump was worse than was publicly acknowledged, and the president was nearly put on a ventilator, The New York Times and CNN reported. 
• Known cases of COVID-19 variants in the U.S. have more than doubled since Jan. 31, and have increased five-fold since Jan. 22, the U.S. reported Thursday night.
• Some states are rolling back COVID-19 restrictions. Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte lifted the state's mask mandate Friday. And Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak on Thursday announced he would gradually end a monthslong "pause" on economic activity meant to slow the virus’ deadly resurgence over the holiday.
• The top aide to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo acknowledged pausing the release of data on COVID-19 in nursing homes because the governor's administration feared it could be "used against us" by the Department of Justice under Trump.
• The number of suicidal children in San Francisco has hit a record high and health experts say it is clear that keeping public schools closed "is catalyzing a mental health crisis among school-aged children," according to a lawsuit the city filed Thursday to push its school district to reopen classrooms.
• The Australian Open will be allowed to continue but without crowds for at least five days after the Victoria state government imposed a lockdown starting Saturday in response to a COVID-19 outbreak at a quarantine hotel.
• Nearby New Zealand, meanwhile, has had no community transmission of the virus for several months due to heightened restrictions. The country’s first vaccine doses are due to arrive next week, with border workers getting inoculated beginning Feb. 20, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on Friday.

Today's numbers: The U.S. has reported more than 27.4 million COVID-19 cases and 476,000 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Worldwide, there have been more than 108.0 million cases and more than 2.3 million deaths.

See the numbers in your area here, check out where cases are rising here, and see how many vaccines your state has received here.

– Grace Hauck, Paste BN breaking news reporter, @grace_hauck