Editorial
The stigma around receiving the COVID-19 vaccine is a hot topic in Amarillo as well as the entire United States. We as a staff believe that this vaccine will be good for the public and will have a positive impact on the pandemic by helping it come to an end.
Amarillo is currently leading the nation in vaccination rates and Texas, Michigan and Florida are some of the top states leading in vaccine rates, according to News Channel 10 and Covidactnow.org. It is reported that there are 28,859 people in Amarillo that have received the first dose of the vaccine and 1,925 that have taken the second dose.
Although it is amazing that these states are leading in vaccinations, it is upsetting that there are only three states out of the 50 that are encouraging people to get vaccinated. If the rest of America pushes for people to get the vaccine, there is a possibility that this pandemic can end in a shorter amount of time.
There are numerous people that believe many of the misconceptions about the vaccine and refuse to get vaccinated. Some of the misconceptions are that the vaccine will give people COVID-19 and that the quick development of the vaccine means that it is not safe. It is important to fact-check rumors before basing your opinions and beliefs on those rumors.
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta released facts about the vaccine that disprove the misconceptions. Some of the information that they released stated that the vaccine does not contain any part of the virus and that it will not cause people to get COVID-19 or get an infection.
They also stated that the “significant scientific process decades before the pandemic, in addition to collaboration among scientists around the world, made rapid development possible.” This proves that the reasoning behind some people refusing to get the vaccine is not valid.
There is also a misconception that we don’t know what is in the vaccine itself, which is also incorrect because Pfizer and Moderna have both released the ingredient lists for their COVID-19 vaccines. This also disproves the theory that there are microchips and tracking devices in the vaccine because they are simply not part of the ingredients. Sorry, conspiracy theorists.
And if disproving the rumors about the vaccine is not a good argument for some people, let’s think back to the polio outbreak of 1955. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the first polio vaccine was available in the U.S. in 1955 and was required for children to get in 1977. The requirement of receiving the three doses of the vaccine helped the U.S. become polio-free in 1979.
The vaccine should not have to become mandatory for people to get it, but that is what it took to end the poliovirus. If people do research and think back to previous pandemics, they will get the vaccine.
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