VOA photo from clinical trial of COVID 19 vaccine in Indonesia via Wikimedia Creative Commons
American approval of COVID-19 vaccines is slowly rising, and Asian Americans are among those most willing to get a vaccine, according to a survey conducted by Pew Research Center.
For the past few months Pew Research Center has been surveying American adults about COVID-19 vaccines. From November 18 to 29 they surveyed 12,648 U.S. adults.
As of late November, 60% of Americans surveyed by the Pew Research Center said they were definitely or probably willing to get a COVID-19 vaccine if it were available today. That percentage is up form 51 percent in September.
Still, 21% of those surveyed said they were not currently planning on getting a COVID-19 vaccine and are pretty certain they won’t get one even if presented with new information.
Asian Americans were the racial group that showed the most willingness to get a COVID-19 vaccine. Overall, 83% of English-speaking Asian Americans said they would definitely or probably get a COVID-19 vaccine if it were available today, compared to 63% of Hispanic Americans, 61% of White Americans and 42% of Black Americans.
The 83% only represents English-speaking Asian Americans. It is unclear if Pew Research Center conducted the survey in any languages other than Engish.
Asian American communities throughout the country have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. A vaccine could provide some relief, but it may take a long time to distribute.
“There’s a huge challenge from a supply chain perspective to getting the vaccines out,” Dr. Ashish Jha, Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health said while speaking at a Nov. 13 briefing organized by Ethnic Media Services.
Jha said that “vaccinations” save lives, not just vaccines. Vaccine hesitancy could limit its effectiveness for the country as a whole. Many communities of color who have been hit hardest by the pandemic have indicated their reluctance to get a vaccine, according to Jha.
But, Pew’s survey suggests that that hesitancy may be slowly fading.
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