By Avery Atkins

On September 10th, I decided to get the updated COVID-19 booster and my flu shot. I am a believer in the vaccine and will always get every vaccine if available to me. While I was waiting to get my booster, there were others in line bad-mouthing the booster. One said, “I’m not allowing the government to put a microchip in my arm.” One woman said, “I’m not risking my fertility for others.” I was completely dumbfounded listening to them. If people put the time and effort into researching the booster and its benefits, I believe they would see the things they are saying are complete myths. Getting the vaccine increases our herd immunity, protects ourselves, and protects those who are unable to get the vaccine. Covid is a serious problem; we can greatly decrease the risk of ourselves and others catching it by getting vaccinated. 

COVID-19 and vaccinations are both public health issues today and both are very common problems. COVID has been around since late 2019 and became a national worldwide pandemic in March 2020. The pandemic caused many countries to shut down ports, go into lockdowns, and mandate masks. According to John Hopkins, there have been over 95 million cases confirmed and more than 1.5 million pronounced dead due to COVID (1). The question is why don’t people get the vaccine? Some say their hesitancy is because of the quickly developed vaccine that still hasn’t been around enough even though we are over two years into the pandemic (2). However, there is more to this. COVID is a form of other coronaviruses like SARS and MERS and both have been under a microscope for years (2). When a new coronavirus came to light in late 2019, the mRNA sequence technology used for SARS and MERS was applied to the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines we see today (2). Another reason is the possibility to catch COVID even after full vaccination (2). That is correct, there isn’t a vaccine that works 100%. The purpose of vaccines and boosters is to reduce the number of people clinging for their life in a hospital bed on the brink of death (2). Those who have been hospitalized or pronounced dead due to COVID, is mainly within the population who remained unvaccinated or failed to receive their booster (2). On a good note, 79% of the nation has received one out of two vaccines for their COVID series, 68% have completed their COVID shot series, and 33% have gotten at least one booster (3). In Virginia, on average, there were around 1,800 COVID vaccines administered each day since the end of 2020 (4). The Virginia Department of Health shows that most vaccines are administered through pharmacies and 82.6% of the population is vaccinated (4). 

The CDC Foundation is a non-profit organization sanctioned by Congress whose mission is to create partnerships with the CDC and others that work together to fight threats against our health and safety (5). Programs made will provide education and information on CDC and public health, and go alongside CDC’s priorities and ongoing work (5). In late 2021, the vaccine was boosted by the foundation to fight off the Delta variant through fundraisers, advertisements, and articles while still sharing information (5). With these efforts to increase the acceptance of the vaccine, the CDC Foundation announced that they supported more than 150 community-based organizations (CBOs) and gained more than $30 million to promote the vaccine further (5). This will allow more CBO support across the United States and more engagement with health departments to address vaccine-related concerns while promoting timely vaccinations for both COVID and influenza (5). 

While this paper might not change your mind, one way to help this problem is to go get the updated COVID booster or your COVID vaccine in general. By getting the vaccine, you can and most likely will prevent someone who is unable to get the vaccine from catching COVID. To find the nearest vaccine site visit https://www.vaccines.gov/search/. If you are all caught up on your vaccinations, you can always donate to the CDC Foundation. Their mission is to increase the number of vaccinations so anything to help increase numbers is valuable. 

Citations (APA)

 (n.d.). Mortality Analyses – Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. Retrieved September 30, 2022, from https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/mortality

(2022, January 13). 7 reasons people don’t get vaccinated against COVID-19. Retrieved September 30, 2022, from https://www.novanthealth.org/healthy-headlines/7-reasons-people-dont-get-vaccinated-against-covid-19

 (n.d.). US Coronavirus vaccine tracker – USAFacts. Retrieved September 30, 2022, from https://usafacts.org/visualizations/covid-vaccine-tracker-states

 (n.d.). COVID-19 Vaccine Summary – Virginia Department of Health. Retrieved September 30, 2022, from https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus/see-the-numbers/covid-19-in-virginia/covid-19-vaccine-summary/

(2021, August 24). CDC Foundation and Partners Support More Than 150 …. Retrieved September 30, 2022, from https://www.cdcfoundation.org/pr/2021/Community-based-organizations-promote-COVID19-vaccination