MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – With a possible vaccine for COVID-19 still more than two months away, Alabama health officials said Thursday that they already are working to combat the reluctance among some to accept an immunization that’s become politically divisive.
Small amounts of vaccines currently in trials could begin arriving by the end of the year, and a communications program to overcome hesitancy by some to receive the shot is a key part of the planning, Dr. Scott Harris said at a briefing on the program.
Treatments for the new coronavirus have a “political dimension” that, when combined with longstanding resistance to vaccines and historical distrust of public health by groups including Black people, will present a challenge to getting as many people as possible to accept vaccination, he said.
The Department of Public Health, which Harris heads, is in contact with medical practices and groups, faith leaders, local officials and legislators in hopes they can help pave the way for acceptance, he said.
“We have a lot of our staff interacting with different groups,” he said.