Norwalkers urged to ‘take whatever’ vaccine is available
NORWALK — “Take whatever is in front of you.”
That’s what co-chair of Gov. Ned Lamont’s COVID-19 task force, Dr. Reggie Eadie, urged Norwalk residents to do when getting their coronavirus vaccines during a town hall Wednesday.
During the town hall, Eadie discussed what vaccine hesitancy meant, how to combat it and how to ensure all sects of the community are receiving equal access to the vaccines.
Eadie leads Trinity Health of New England and was selected to lead the governor’s COVID-19 task force, alongside state Department of Public Health Acting
Commissioner Dr. Deirdre Gifford, in September.
“We were calling Black and brown communities vaccine hesitant before there was even a vaccine, which is
very unfair,” Eadie said. “It’s not that they’re hesitant. They don’t have fair access to the vaccine. Vaccine distribution has to be done in an equitable manner, has to be fair. We have to consider barriers the system put in place for such residents if we really care about equity.”
As defined by the World Health Organization, vaccine hesitancy can only exist if the vaccine itself is readily available and supply is equal to or greater than the demand, Eadie said.
“Let’s think about the essential worker,” he said. “... Many live in multigenerational
households, they may have to take public transportation to get to a vaccination center, and by the time they get there the vaccination site is closed. That’s the problem.”
In a discussion of what makes vaccine distribution truly equitable, Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling proposed the city health department begin hosting vaccination clinics outside of traditional business hours, as most were previously conducted.
This would mean pop-up vaccination events on weekends and during the evening, the mayor said.
“Maybe we have to look at an evening or Sunday clinic, when people are at church
already, to make sure we do everything to get this vaccine to the public,” Rilling said.
The first step in this plan to expand vaccination clinics beyond the work week begins Wednesday, at the first of a twice-weekly vaccination clinic hosted by the Norwalk Health Department at the movie theater on North Main Street.
In the original agreement between the theater company and the city, the vaccination clinics would be held Monday and Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Ultimate Regent 8 theater on North Main Street. However, the first of these clinics is set for Wednesday from 2 to 7 p.m.
The change was to allow
access outside of the typical 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. timeframe, city spokesperson Josh Morgan said.
“When we talk about equity and access, that is going to have to involve nights and weekends to try to accommodate as many people as possible,” Morgan said. “So, we’ll adjust clinic timing as needed.”
In addition to further defining equity in vaccine distribution, Eadie addressed efficacy concerns among the three approved COVID-19 vaccines.
The Johnson & Johnson one-shot vaccine was reported as less effective than the Moderna and Pfizer alternatives at 66.3 percent efficacy, as compared to the 94.1 percent and 95 percent effectiveness of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, respectively, according to the CDC.
The variation in effectiveness is likely due to the development of COVID-19 variants and different strains, Eadie said. As the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines received FDA emergency use approval months before the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the first two were not tested on the COVID variants, while the single-dose vaccine was.
As the vaccines were designed to treat the original COVID-19 virus, they are less effective but still useful in preventing contraction of the other strains of the virus, but the Johnson & Johnson
vaccine was the only one with data against the different strains, Eadie said.
Eadie said he would not opt for one vaccine over another, regardless of efficacy percentages.
“My recommendation to the audience is take whatever is in front of you,” Eadie said. “I completely understand why people are attracted to the Johnson & Johnson. I got mine on Dec. 21 and my second shot was 21 days later. I was cruising and very, very happy I got that stress off my chest. I was concerned seeing thousands die every day, afraid I would be a victim.”