CNN Health reports US health officials are racing against time to get more vaccine shots in arms. For if they don’t, they may leave a wider gap for mutations to spawn. However, they are approaching a point where vaccine supply could start exceeding demand. Does this mean a new US COVID vaccine tipping point lies ahead?
Will Encouraging Vaccination Become Harder?
Kaiser Family Foundation has said ‘While timing may differ by state, we estimate that across the U.S. as a whole, we will likely reach a tipping point on vaccine enthusiasm in the next 2 to 4 weeks. Once this happens, efforts to encourage vaccination will become much harder. This presents a challenge to reaching the levels of herd immunity that are expected to be needed.’
By April 21, 2021, 40.1% of the US population had received at least one COVID-19 dose according to CDC. But Dr. Fauci estimates US needs approximately twice that number, through vaccine or infection to suppress the spread. And to date a scant 26% of Americans have full vaccination. This is about timing, and time may not be on the nation’s side.
Does a US COVID Vaccine Tipping Point Lie Ahead?
A slackening off in demand now, could give the virus a break. The break it needs to mutate, spread, and set off new surges running ahead of COVID vaccine development. CNN cites several officials at local level who have growing concerns.
‘The county’s younger population isn’t as eager to get vaccinated,’ Mercer County emergency response coordinator and public information officer Kristy Fryman says. There are slots going unfulfilled, adds Spring Lake, Michigan emergency room physician, Dr. Rob Davidson.
Apparently, local officials there are concerned over the hesitancy they are seeing develop. But how wide is this vaccine indecision? Does this reported trend confirm a new US COVID vaccine tipping point lies ahead? We sure hope it does not.
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