Give the Virus Vaccine a Shot, Health Leaders Plead to Hesitant

Even before a Covid-19 vaccine is ready, top health officials want to build public support for getting the shot, particularly among Black Americans who are more skeptical of the vaccine.

The U.S. needs nearly 230 million Americans to get the vaccine to ensure herd immunity, but public health officials worry that skepticism about the first vaccine for a new disease combined with historic racial inequities in health care may scare away people who would otherwise receive the shot.

“What scares me more than anything else is a third of Americans are afraid of taking a vaccine to prevent Covid-19,” Peter ...