Health Officials Doing More Outreach To Make Sure People Of Color Feel Comfortable With COVID-19 Vaccine
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- As more people are getting the COVID-19 vaccine, some troubling statistics are emerging, fewer people of color are getting vaccinated.
Now, there's an effort to reassure people in under-represented groups that the vaccine is safe.
The lines are long for people who want a vaccine, but in some cases, very few people of color show up.
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Maryland recently started releasing a break-down of who is getting vaccinated.
The data shows it's overwhelmingly white. They make up 58% of Maryland's population. Health experts believe some people of color look to history as a reason to not trust vaccines.
"They go all the way back to Tuskegee, where they have a man who had syphilis and they were not treated. Some of them go back to Henrietta Lacks which is right here in Baltimore," Dr. Bronner said.
Dr. Bronner also said things are changing because medical professionals are listening more.
Baltimore City's health department will be holding 20 listening sessions to hear people's concerns.
They are bringing resources right to the communities that need them. On Friday, a mobile unit vaccinated residents at a senior home in south Baltimore's Cherry Hill neighborhood.
Hospitals realize they have a role to play, too. Staff at Grace Medical Center in west Baltimore have gotten the shot. Now, they're taking their mobile unit on the road to educate and encourage people to get the shot, too.
"I think many folks, when the vaccine first came out, they were hesitant because they wanted to see what would happen after the second dose, and as our leaders received their second dose, we suddenly had a rash as well as education that we provided," Rebecca Altman, Vice President of Operations and Chief Integration Officer for LifeBridge Health, said.
For the latest information on coronavirus go to the Maryland Health Department's website or call 211. You can find all of WJZ's coverage on coronavirus in Maryland here.
