Public trust in virus vaccine is topmost

Though it seems too soon to consider how to distribute a coronavirus vaccine before one is approved and at least half a year before one is widely available, we support Gov. Ned Lamont’s move this week to appoint an advisory group to do so. It is better to be prepared for this crucial step in controlling the pandemic, as Vice President Mike Pence’s White House Coronavirus Task Force suggested in a call to Lamont and other governors Monday. But mostly the time is needed to convince the public the vaccine will be safe.

Distrust is two-fold. The race to develop, test and get approval for a vaccine has, unfortunately, become political. Operation Warp Speed has several pharmaceutical companies feverishly working on a vaccine, including Pfizer with a research and development center in Groton. President Donald Trump has suggested that a vaccine could be approved by Election Day, which injected politics into the process and raised skepticism.

The second distrust is even deeper. Black Americans have been disproportionately affected with COVID-19 deaths, but might be wary of a vaccine because of the shameful Tuskegee Syphilis Study exposed by a whistleblower in 1972. In the study, the U.S. Public Health Service tracked venereal disease in hundreds of Black men for 40 years — without medical treatment.

Recognizing the history, Lamont said he will “do everything we can to give people a little confidence this is no Tuskegee experiment.”

The governor has learned a few lessons, apparent in the formation of the new group that will be co-chaired by acting Public Health Commissioner Dr. Deidre Gifford and Dr. Reggie Eadie, president and CEO of Trinity Health of New England, which includes several hospitals in the state. The Governor’s COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Group will operate in full transparency with meetings open to the public, unlike the Reopen Connecticut Advisory Group that met criticism for some decisions.

Also, Lamont said he will appoint some state legislators to the new group, which responds to charges that extension of his executive orders earlier this month enabled the executive branch to operate without the check of the legislative branch. Other members who will be appointed include vaccination experts, vaccine providers and representatives of state agencies, labor, emergency management and highly impacted communities.

“I want this group to review every possible scenario when it comes to the science and efficacy of the vaccine, as well as the logistics of its distribution,” Lamont said.

The logistics alone present quite a challenge. The vaccine could require special conditions, such as a freezer, for storage.

Above all, government through this advisory group and the governor will have to gain public trust that an eventual vaccine, or vaccines, is safe and fully vetted before approval by the federal Food and Drug Administration. As anxious as everyone is to return to a “normal” pre-pandemic life, first there must be confidence. Without at least 70 percent of the population vaccinated, the virus will continue its rampage.

The race to develop, test and get approval for a vaccine has, unfortunately, become political.