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Indian Health Service Administers Vaccine, But Many More Still Need Shots to Establish Herd Immunity
COVID-19 cases are increasing in the Indian community.
The Indian Health Service reports that it has distributed more than 760,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to individuals in its health system as of March 18.
Although many people have received the vaccine and others plan to register when they are eligible, there is still vaccine hesitancy driven by inexperience as well as those who believe the conspiracy theories they see on social media.
Republicans make up most Americans who do not plan to get vaccinated. A recent CBS News poll showed that 34 percent of Republicans say they will not get the COVID-19 vaccine. Thirty percent of independents also said they do not plan to get a vaccine while only 10 percent of Democrats plan to avoid the shots. Some had a family member who had a bad reaction to a flu shot.
“We pray for all of those we have lost to COVID-19 over the past year, including 1,222 of our own Navajo people. We honored them with a candle lit service as we prayed for continued strength for their families as they grieve for their loved ones. We will overcome.”
-Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez
This reluctance by many Americans to get a vaccination will make it more difficult to reach herd immunity, according to Anthony Fauci, President Biden’s chief medical advisor. He says that 70 to 85 percent of the population would need to get vaccinated for this to occur.
Meanwhile, the Indian Health Service reports that there are 188,783 cases of COVID-19 in the areas it serves. Even though there is a cumulative positivity rate of 16.5 percent in the Navajo region, the 7-day rolling positivity rate is down to 4.8 percent. The Phoenix area also had a 14 percent cumulative positivity rate, but its 7-day rolling positivity rate is down to 4.2 percent.
Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected our nation for more than a year. “We pray for all of those we have lost to COVID-19 over the past year, including 1,222 of our own Navajo people,” Nez said on Twitter. “We honored them with a candle lit service as we prayed for continued strength for their families as they grieve for their loved ones. We will overcome.”