Barbarafelt ecstatic in January when a Wisconsin Department of Health Services letterconfirmed that she and her parents were eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations. The28-year-old education student lives with her parents in Milwaukee. All threeshare caretaking duties for Barbara’s young child, who is on the autismspectrum. That unpaid work qualifies them as frontline health care personnel inWisconsin’s vaccine rollout. WPRand Wisconsin Watch are withholding Barbara’s last name to avoid repercussionsfor her parents, who are living in the country without legal authorization. Thefamily arrived in Wisconsin from Mexico about two decades ago. Barbara iscurrently protected from deportation under the federal Deferred Action forChildhood Arrivals (DACA) policy, which grants some rights to eligibleimmigrants who came to the United States as children. Barbarashouldered more caretaking duties during the pandemic because her parents workoutside of the home, and they feared exposing the child to the coronavirus.Vaccinations would make everyone’s life a little easier. Booking threeappointments at a Milwaukee Walgreens went smoothly. Do you have feedback on Milwaukee NNS's reporting? Take our survey to let us know how we're doing! Butthe pharmacy staff turned away her parents because their IDs were expired, shesaid. Barbara said she presented two current, state-issued IDs but was askedfor additional proof of residency. The pharmacy gave her a 45-minute deadlineto return after fetching it from home, she said. Thefamily left and didn’t come back. It is just one example of what some membersof racial and ethnic groups in Wisconsin say are barriers to getting vaccinatedamong people hardest hit by the pandemic. Shots at last Thefamily eventually received shots through the Milwaukee Health Department, wherea family member works. But not until a month later. “Alot of us want to get vaccinated. But we’re not given the option to getvaccinated,” she said. It’s very challenging, especially for the undocumentedcommunity.” Walgreenswould not comment on Barbara’s experience unless she signed a medical privacywaiver, a corporate spokesperson said in an emailed statement. The pharmacyasks for identification at the appointment and in the store to match the personreceiving the vaccine to the person who booked it online, according to thestatement. “Unlessspecifically required by a jurisdiction, our policy is to not turn awayindividuals who do not produce an ID,” the statement said. “Neither astate-issued ID nor U.S. citizenship is a requirement for a vaccine. We arereiterating this policy with our 40,000+ pharmacy team members.” Vaccinations hard to find for some Publichealth leaders have called Wisconsin a national leaderfor quickly and widely delivering shots to residents. But access remains farfrom even among Wisconsinites. The state’s racial, ethnic and other minoritygroups face major barriers to inoculation — just as those groups suffer a disproportionate share of COVID-19 infections,hospitalizations and deaths. A March study of 48 states ranked Wisconsin 32 indelivering shots to highly vulnerable communities. Interviewswith Barbara and others illustrate how barriers are fueling disparities in thestate’s vaccination rollout. ShengKhang of Wausau, who is Hmong, sees barriers in the form of“white-culture-based” security questions she answered in a health recordsportal while booking an appointment for her mother, who immigrated to Wisconsin26 years ago. The online portal asked for the patient’s astrological sign,which her mom would have little reason to know. MelodyMcCurtis sees a range of barriers for residents in the Metcalfe Park neighborhoodon Milwaukee’s Black-majority North Side. Those include a lack of internetaccess, time and transportation — resources that more privileged vaccinehunters have used to find appointmentsduring times of high vaccine demand. Wisconsinofficials anticipated some challenges early in their vaccination campaign. DHSin April awarded $6.2 million in grants to promote vaccine accessin underserved communities. But DHS data reveal that stark disparitiespersist: Only 12% of Black residents have received at least one vaccine dose asof April 1, compared to 29% of white residents, 20% of American Indianresidents and 19% of Asian residents. Meanwhile, only 14% of residentsidentifying as Hispanic have received a dose, compared to 30% who arenon-Hispanic. Aimingto understand what works, WPR and Wisconsin Watch interviewed nearly a dozenpeople working to bring vaccines into underserved communities. The barriers ineach community vary, but the solutions illustrate common themes, including thepower of partnerships, deep listening and meeting people where they are.