The pandemic has been anything but “the great equalizer” that some people called it when it started more than a year ago. Here in the USA, COVID-19 fell ill and killed a disproportionate number of blacks, Native Americans and Latinos. The distribution of vaccines is also proving unfair. Black and Latino elders in Los Angeles, for example, were vaccinated at a lower rate than their white and Asian American counterparts.
Mistrust of vaccines has been a general challenge. But black Americans were less inclined than other racial and ethnic groups to want to be vaccinated, according to a December Pew Research Center survey. To fix a system that is not fully serving black Americans and other people of color, “there really needs to be a little cure,” says Melva Thompson-Robinson, executive director of the Health Disparities Research Center at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
The Verge talked to Thompson-Robinson about the roots of this distrust and how to heal.
This interview was slightly edited for clarity and length.
How does distrust of vaccines in communities of color differ from white celebrities or conspiracy theorists who are anti-xxx?
It’s not just a question of, “Oh, I don’t think anything works because that’s what I heard.” It is that ingrained historical trauma that has been carried on for generations. This distrust comes from the racism they experience. When you are talking about African Americans, in particular, you are talking about a group of people who are descendants of slaves.
And then it’s a different kind of thing. It is not “I believe these vaccines are not effective because I heard someone said that”. This is “I am not trusting because of the experience that my family had under slavery”.
The important thing now is that people are looking at who is in charge. Who is testing the vaccine? Who is participating in the tests? They say, “Well, I don’t see people who look like me.” Or me Does see people who look like me. ”And all of this is huge. We need to see the people who look like us and are involved.
What are some of those historical traumas that made some people of color distrust vaccines?
When you start talking particularly about slaves, one of the men who is credited as the founder of gynecology actually had surgery on black women because they were considered property. He was having gynecological surgery without anesthesia because part of the thought was, “Well, they don’t feel pain.”
This is not true. All people are in pain.
You can skip the study of syphilis in Tuskegee. You can also see the story of Henrietta Lacks, who had cervical cancer. And they collected her cells at Johns Hopkins and still use their cells for research today.
So, people are saying, “Well, you need to trust the health care system.” But healthcare systems, healthcare facilities and healthcare providers need to act reliably. You can’t just wait for people to say, “Ah, yes, now I’m going to trust you” after centuries of distrust.
How do we see inequalities happening today with regard to the distribution of vaccines in the United States?
The challenge has been with some of the vaccines where you need to have very specialized storage resources, which limits where some of them can be distributed. Communities of color do not always have access to these deposits.
For people working in supermarkets or other retail and food outlets, taking time off to go to an appointment is not so simple. If they do not have sick leave or if they have a limited period of leave, they cannot stand in line for hours at a time.
Another challenge is the messages that reach people. You already know that there are populations concerned with receiving the vaccine. Therefore, the message for this population needs to be different.
There is no “one size fits all” recipe on how to reach different communities of color. But how should the dissemination strategies or solutions be?
Here in Clark County, where Las Vegas is located, the governor launched a share ownership initiative last week. Because if you look at the data, where the cases are versus where the people who are getting the vaccine – these are two different places in the same city. It is not the same group of people. We are seeing this uneven distribution of resources. We are in this perfect storm and, to survive it, I think there must be some abdication of power.
There really needs to be some healing and a few steps back. No rush, but stepping back and saying, “You know what, we heard what you’re saying. We understand where we went wrong and we want to do better. “
Here’s what else is going on this week.
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The fast-spreading coronavirus variant is appearing in US sewers
Some researchers are tracking variants of the coronavirus in US sewage systems. For more information on sewers and COVID-19, check out Border Science last year’s video. (Antonio Regalado / Technical review of MIT)
Doctors and lawmakers ask the FDA to address racial disparities in pulse oximeters
Pulse oximeters can measure the amount of oxygen in people’s blood through the skin, but they are not as accurate in people of color. Some experts are asking the FDA to review the effectiveness of these devices. (Erin Brodwin and Nicholas St.Fleur / STATE)
Infantile colds do not prevent coronavirus infection, study concludes
For a time, some people thought that children may be less vulnerable to the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, because they were exposed to other coronaviruses that cause colds. This is not the case. One study found that these other coronaviruses did not produce effective antibodies against the new coronavirus. (Apoorva Mandavilli / The New York Times)
Development
How Merck, a vaccine titan, lost the complicit race
A look at why a “pharmaceutical giant” left the vaccine race – and where they can go from here. (Katie Thomas / The New York Times)
AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine has been confusing since the beginning
Earlier this week, South Africa decided to stop launching the AstraZeneca vaccine after it performed poorly against a widespread variant in a small trial. This week, WHO recommended that the vaccine still be used. (Nicole Wetsman / The Verge)
Covid-19 vaccination rates follow the money in the states with the biggest wealth gaps, shows the analysis
States with large wealth gaps, like Connecticut, are seeing huge disparities in vaccination rates. In Connecticut, there is a 65% difference in vaccination rates between the wealthiest and poorest communities. (Olivia Goldhill / STATE)
Perspectives:
“I take my shift, wash my face, change clothes and get on the app.”
– Emergency room doctor Daniel Fagbuyi tells Bloomberg about your voluntary second round: fighting misinformation about vaccines on the Clubhouse social media app.
More than numbers
For the more than 108,030,043 people around the world who test positive, may their path to recovery be smooth.
The family and friends of the 2,377,268 people who died worldwide – 479,458 of those in the United States – their loved ones will not be forgotten.
Be safe, everyone.