Three out of ten Americans who have refused to get vaccinated against the coronavirus say they would do so once the FDA grants full and final approval to the vaccine. Their excuse is about to evaporate.
The FDA is expected to grant final approval to the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine within a matter of weeks, The New York Times reports Tuesday evening. The agency’s “unofficial deadline” is “Labor Day or sooner.”
Currently about 93 million Americans eligible to get vaccinated have refused, for reasons researchers say generally fall into two camps: those steadfastly refusing and those who may be open to the vaccine given the right circumstances.
Some of the so-called vaccine “hesitant” are relying on false “information” spewed by the extremist propaganda machines of right wing media and cultish groups. Others refusing say they have other reasons, like wanting full FDA approval. A few cite religious reasons.
“Some 24% of white evangelicals said in June they wouldn’t be vaccinated, down from 26% in March,” The Wall Street Journal reports. “Evangelicals of all races make up about one-quarter of the U.S. population, and health officials say persuading them to get the shot is crucial to slowing the spread of the Delta variant fueling recent increases in Covid-19 cases.”
Coronavirus infections across America have skyrocketed in recent weeks, more than doubling to an average of 86,000 per day. In some states, like Florida, the number of new daily COVID cases are setting records.
Image: Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock. Photo via Wikimedia and a CC license