![\"headshot](\"https:\/\/nclnet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/TaliaZ.png\" "\\"Health")
<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nBy NCL Health Policy intern Talia Zitner<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Around the globe, researchers and scientists are racing to find a vaccine for the COVID-19 virus. Developing a safe, effective, and affordable vaccine is already a challenging feat, but vaccine hesitancy presents another unique challenge to scientists, government researchers, and community leaders.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cVaccine hesitancy\u201d refers to the reluctance or refusal to be vaccinated or have one\u2019s children vaccinated against a disease, even if a vaccine is proven to be safe and effective. Vaccine hesitancy poses dangers to both the individual and their community, since exposure to a contagious disease puts the person at risk, and they are far more likely to spread the disease to others if they won\u2019t get vaccinated. Ironically, these communities may be the most vulnerable to COVID-19, and a serious effort must be made to create a sense of comfort around the COVID-19 vaccine once it\u2019s available to the public.<\/p>\n Not to be confused with the vaccine-hesitant, \u201canti-vaxxers\u201d represent a movement of people who dispute the safety of vaccinations and challenge laws that mandate vaccinations. This is a more insidious movement funded by dubious sources (reportedly, one New York couple<\/a><\/span> has donated millions of dollars to the movement) that deceptively politicize public health measures under the guise of protecting personal liberties.<\/p>\n Public health agencies are trying to get vaccination levels to 95 percent to guarantee herd immunity. Some concerns that are top of mind for consumers include knowing the timeframe for a vaccine, who will have access to it, what it will cost consumers, if anything, and how states will determine methods of enforcing vaccination. The possibility of a COVID-19 vaccine also begs the question of whether vaccination will be mandatory for public schools and government workers.<\/p>\n Perhaps one of the most important projects right now surrounding vaccine hesitancy is the Vaccine Confidence Project<\/a><\/span> (VCP), which is dedicated to \u201cconducting a global study to track public sentiment and emotions around current and potential measures to contain and treat COVID-19.\u201d Using a mix of population surveys and social media tracking, VCP \u201cwill investigate perception and sentiment of COVID-19 social distancing measures and potential medical tools globally.\u201d This project will be essential moving forward, as it will continue to inform understanding on how the global population perceives the eventual vaccine.<\/p>\n As of now, VCP reports that only 25 percent<\/a><\/span> of African Americans\u2014a population that has been disproportionately hit by the virus\u2014plan to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Why is this the case? Due to lack of access to hospitals, pharmacies, doctors and clinics in Black communities, failure to expand Medicaid, and other root causes; the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the disparities in our health care system.<\/p>\n To ensure herd immunity\u2014which is somewhere north of 90 percent immunity\u2014much work needs to be done, especially with the Black community, to increase confidence when a COVID-19 vaccine is released. At this time, Black leaders such as former U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Regina Benjamin, and current U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams, are among those leading the charge to encourage public health efforts such as advocating for face-mask usage<\/a><\/span> and collaborating with the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) Coronavirus Task Force and Resource Center,<\/a><\/span> which provides expertise on the virus and its impact on the Black community.<\/p>\n