Gilchrist encourages COVID-19 vaccinations
With the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine expected in Michigan within weeks, preparation is underway. It’s not all about finding enough freezers and making dist r i but i on plans. Mindset is critically important.
“The presence of a vaccine only matters if people get vaccinated. … It will be critical that we vaccinate as many people as possible,’’ Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II said at a Thursday press conference.
Gilchrist discussed the vaccine as he presented an interim report as chairman of the Michigan Coronavirus Task Force on Racial Disparities.
“Task force members are hard at work coming up with ways to address the fears, concerns, questions and apprehension that exist for many legitimate reasons in communities of color in Michigan,’’ Gilchrist said.
He said he will get vaccinated publicly at the appropriate time to prove that it is safe.
“We are blessed in Michigan to have, starting with Dr. (Joneigh) Khaldun, some of the best minds in the world to make sure this process is safe, equitable and trustworthy,’’ Gilchrist said. “We need to get the word out to all communities that when the vaccine is available and safe we need to utilize it.’’
The task force was created in Michigan early in the pandemic when the virus was killing black people in the state at a rate of five times higher than white Michiganders.
“In the most recent available data we see significant progress, with black people accounting for only 9.1 percent of the cases and 5.7 percent of the deaths,’’ Gilchrist said.
“To put that in perspective black people make up just under 14 percent of the population in Michigan and at the beginning of the pandemic we were accounting for more than 38 percent of the cases and 41 percent of the deaths,’’ he added.
He said they’ve addressed food and housing security, access to technology and the internet along with flu vaccination and other concerns.
“Since the beginning the coronavirus has really shined a light on the health, economic and educational challenges that black communities and frankly most communities of color face on a daily basis,’’ Gilchrist said. “We observed these deadly trends presenting themselves due to COVID. We did not wait, we took immediate action.’’
He reiterated several times, that while the task force has seen measurable success, there is still much work to be done.