Waiting for a Covid-19 Vaccine, and Worrying About It – The New York Times

To the Editor:

Re A Vaccine Doesnt Work if People Dont Take It (Sunday Review, July 12):

I thank Dr. Phoebe Danziger for her thorough and persuasive argument in favor of a more concerted effort to educate the population about the importance of vaccinations. I wholeheartedly agree that the approach needs to change, engaging social and religious leaders as well as medical professionals.

However, her article identifies but never provides an answer for the primary reason I will wait before vaccinating myself and my family: the deeply corrupt, anti-science government that President Trump has created.

Through intimidation, bullying and threats to fire those who disagree, he has created a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that is amending its health guidelines within hours of an angry tweet, he has promoted harmful and phony cures, and he has awarded a $1.6 billion vaccine contract to a pharmaceutical company that has never successfully brought a product to market.

Under these conditions, who can possibly trust that the first vaccine to emerge from Operation Warp Speed (a name that also does not imply careful and meticulous work) will have undergone the proper testing and scrutiny that other vaccines have?

I do not doubt the hard work and integrity of the many scientists and doctors who are working on this. But the last few months have given me no reason to trust the government that regulates their work. I have given my young daughter every vaccine recommended by her pediatrician, without a second thought. I will most definitely not be first in line for this one not until Mr. Trump and his crooked team are swept out of office. I believe in science. This administration does not.

Pian RockfeldNew York

To the Editor:

Dr. Phoebe Danziger lays out a number of difficulties in recruiting the large numbers of people needed to accept a Covid-19 vaccine, and thus make it truly effective.

Sorry to add to the problems she outlines, but I would include older Americans among those with concerns. Many drug trials have historically eschewed using older people or those with any pre-existing conditions during drug trials. As a result, we have little way of knowing if a positive effect in children and younger adults will hold true with senior citizens.

I believe in vaccines and I see the complexities. Transparency, clarity about risks and benefits, and a medical-political alliance in communicating are essential. We dont have that now, not even close.

Mary Anne LusheWalled Lake, Mich.

To the Editor:

I agree with Dr. Phoebe Danziger that some strategies, such as green vaccines or coalitions of persuasive leaders, may influence some of those whose distrust of science, government or the world in general would lead them to avoid vaccination. I think what will work to persuade hard core anti-vaxxers is a daily scorecard: Of the people who present with disease, how many of the sick were vaccinated against the disease versus how many were not? If you want to protect yourself and your child, which group do you think you should join?

Joyce AdamsPortland, Ore.

To the Editor:

I know several people who refuse to take vaccines. Sadly, I will miss them!

I. Milton KarabellPhiladelphia

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Waiting for a Covid-19 Vaccine, and Worrying About It - The New York Times