Ohio Health Officials, Urban League Combat Mistrust of COVID-19 Vaccines

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced that COVID-19 vaccines may be available to thousands of frontline workers in the coming weeks. Once it became widely accessible, health officials and local groups said it could be a tough fight for everyone to take a shot.

Pfizer and Modern, who have produced test vaccines that have shown approximately 95% effectiveness, are still pending federal approval. After being approved, they will ship to Ohio in December. Those working in the drug directly treating COVID-19 patients must first receive those doses, followed by a second booster dose.

Urban League of Greater Southwestern Ohio (Cincinnati, OH) COO Cinnamon Pelley said that a little transparency would go a long way. African American communities have been hit hard by COVID-19. Nevertheless, as a new Pew Research Survey Shows that confidence is growing across the country, with some saying that they will not get shots for months if they are accessible.

“There is a very real historical mistrust of medical procedures and experiments,” Pelli said.

The Urban League has helped businesses and individuals secure personal protective equipment since the inception of the pandemic and host-free COVID testing. Pelley said the agency is prepared to help navigate this next phase of the fight against the virus, acknowledging the suspicion.

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