RED STICK, La. (AP) – Brass bands playing a 24-hour coronavirus vaccine event. Doses delivered to commercial fishermen a few minutes from the docks. Pop-up immunization clinics at a Buddhist temple, shelter shelters, truck stations and casinos, with photos available at night or on weekends.
And now, door-to-door actions are beginning in neighborhoods where few people have been vaccinated.
Louisiana makes a complete press to get gunshots, with an aggressive – and sometimes creative – action to make vaccination as easy as possible. The effort comes as vaccine stocks grow, but demand does not.
The state has recruited health workers, colleagues, community groups and church pastors to help avoid hesitation and organize vaccination events. Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards has opened access to the vaccine to anyone 16 years of age or older. The health department has launched a call center to answer questions about the vaccine and to set up meetings for those without internet access or limited technological skills.
Civic organizations and religious groups working with the state have begun using exit tactics, knocking on doors and making phone calls to launch the vaccine.
But even with easy access on a large scale, Louisiana officials are struggling with a problem almost as annoying as COVID-19 itself: how to persuade those who don’t know how to pull up their sleeves.
“I honestly don’t know what people expect. It just doesn’t make sense to me, but I will continue to appeal to them, “said Edwards.
Health officials anticipate a difficult time to reach the threshold that scientists consider necessary to stop the uncontrolled spread of COVID-19, a benchmark of 70% or more of the population that has immunity either by vaccination or by vaccination. previous infections. The problem has taken on a special urgency as more virulent and contagious virus strains reach the United States.
State surveys indicate that 40% or more of Louisiana residents are reluctant to receive the vaccine or do not want to do so. And while Louisiana administers doses at higher rates than other southern states, it remains among the lowest six to vaccinate adults over the age of 18, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Other states are also trying new approaches, either because they have seen visible declines in vaccine interest or because of concerns about fair access.
The Alaska Department of Health is considering setting up vaccination clinics at airports. The Ohio Health Agency has asked vaccine providers to develop sites near bus stations and consider providing mobile immunization services. In Connecticut, the health department has launched an effort to call residents directly to schedule meetings. Mississippi works with local organizations to bring vaccinations directly to older people who are at home. The Alabama Health Agency has studied vaccine reluctance to determine how it should create messages to appeal to those who are hesitant.
Dr. Catherine O’Neal, chief medical officer of the Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Louisiana, Baton Rouge, said she hears from people who believe the vaccine is misinformed on social media, but also from those who simply don’t they feel a sense of urgency to get a shot. Others worry about side effects.
“We have enough vaccine. … If you want a meeting, you can get it within a week, ”O’Neal said. But for many, “there is no driving force when they receive.”
Almost 31% of the state’s population has received at least one dose of vaccine that may require two doses, according to state data. Over 22% were completely immunized.
Shane Pizani, a former sailor living in a New Orleans suburb, contracted COVID-19 shortly after Thanksgiving, with persistent symptoms for more than a month. However, he was nervous about the vaccine.
To alleviate his worries, he did research and discussed them with his doctor, obtaining information that he said reassured him more. When he received his first blow in mid-February, he had a panic attack.
However, he received the second dose and then went to work to convince his mother – who repeated the theories of the anti-vaccine conspiracy he saw on social media.
“I just went on, I went on, I went on. I told him: “We will not come with the children anymore, because I cannot live with me if I gave you COVID and something happened to you”, said Pizani. “So, in the end, he went and got his appointment.”
Kerri Tobin, a professor of education at Louisiana State University, initially worried that the vaccine would come together too quickly to be safe. He then watched as several friends in the healthcare industry and others he trusted posted on social media about receiving their doses.
“I see someone else doing this and it’s okay. And that continues to happen, “she said.
Tobin received his second dose of Pfizer vaccine in late March.
Health officials believe that a kind of word of mouth among friends and family will help increase vaccinations.
Surveys show those who are reluctant or do not want the vaccine to cross racial groups and regions. A recent LSU poll showed greater disinterest on the part of Republicans than Democrats. State officials have a particular concern about southwestern Louisiana, where people are struggling to recover from hurricanes back-to-back and seem less focused on the pandemic.
In each case, the Louisiana Department of Health and state officials are trying to find a compelling approach. For example, the data show that blacks have been vaccinated at lower rates, so the state has contacted African-American pastors and hosts immunization events at their churches. The historical system of black state colleges does its own guidance to enroll graduates and social and religious organizations to encourage people to get vaccinated.
Some parishes have begun delivering vaccines to elderly people with disabilities at home and have developed offers for rideshare services to provide free transportation to vaccination events.
Such a spread of the vaccine could be further complicated by this week’s break in the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine, following reports of rare blood clots in six women who received it. Experts say it is too early to say whether this will increase reluctance in Louisiana and elsewhere.
Mike Bayham, secretary of the Republican Party in Louisiana, had a tough fight with COVID-19 in March 2020. He stayed in bed for a week and faced symptoms for weeks more.
Now he has received the first blow – and he encourages fellow Republicans to do the same. Bayham tells friends and colleagues that the vaccine is one of the greatest achievements of Donald Trump’s presidency and shares details about what you feel about COVID-19.
“You do not want this virus. Any vaccine can make you sick, the virus is much worse, “Bayham said.