PA Turns To Pandemic's Next Problem: Vaccine Hesitancy

PENNSYLVANIA — Touting how far Pennsylvania has come in its vaccine rollout, Gov. Wolf recently spoke about the next major hurdle the state must face to truly overcome the pandemic: vaccine hesitancy.

For months now, the biggest problems facing the state have been the availability of vaccines and the efficiency with which they can administer those doses. Now that supply has increased and the state has shot up in the rankings of the percentage of its population that's vaccinated, officials are turning their attention to hesitancy.

"I hesitate to call it a marketing campaign," Gov. Wolf said Wednesday during a stop at Washington Health System. "But it's about 'what's it gonna take to get me to trust somebody?'"

Specifically, Wolf said that his team was finding it increasingly important to get vaccines to the institutions that people trust, to the individuals that they know personally. It's a different and sometimes overwhelming feeling for some people to receive the vaccine at a mass clinic.

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This means increasing flow of vaccines to physicians, pediatricians, and local healthcare providers that have built long relationships with patients.

The "marketing campaign" is diverse, officials say. It includes social media posts and press conferences. Soon to come is what the state is terming a "statewide media campaign" addressing why getting vaccinated is the right thing.

Current campaigns target specific populations, like hard-to-reach groups of seniors in high rises, or residents in the state's most rural areas.

When asked if Pennsylvania planned on incentivizing the vaccine (states like West Virginia are already offering cash bonds to residents), Wolf would neither confirm nor deny, noting that it was something the legislative vaccine task force would discuss.

“Vaccines have made more of us safer than we were last summer, but we need every adult to get vaccinated so that we can continue to reduce the risks for people who can’t get vaccinated yet, such as our kids and grandkids,” Wolf added.

Another way the state is trying to address hesitancy is by making the process simpler. In addition to just smaller clinics, there is an increasing number of "walk-in" clinics that do not require pre-registration.

Officials note that precautionary measures, like the recent federal pause of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to investigate rare side effects, are a sign that oversight on vaccine safety is working, and should reinvigorate public trust.