Vaccines are safe. But huge numbers of people around the world say they wouldn’t take a Covid jab – CNN

"I'm not anti-vaccine. My kids were both vaccinated with everything, but I would not take a Covid vaccine today," Bailey told CNN.

"I have underlying health issues ... I would want to see enough studies in a long-term period of what the ramifications are for the vaccine."

Bailey said she doesn't trust US President Donald Trump, and that consensus around a vaccine among the world's top scientists and at least six months of testing would be just "a start" in persuading her to take it. "It's much too soon for me, I'd have to say, 18 months."

Neil Johnson, a physicist at George Washington University who is studying vaccine skepticism on social media, told CNN the four most common objections are: safety; whether a vaccine is needed; trust of the establishment and pharmaceutical companies; and perceived uncertainty in the science.

To see how widespread hesitancy is, he suggests asking your family and friends whether they would take a Covid-19 vaccine if one were available now.

"I would be surprised if you ask 10 people and you get all 10 jumping and saying yes without adding any caveats," he said.

Doubts over Covid-19 vaccine

Johnson said this was a "massive issue" -- and possibly an even bigger one than the polls indicate.

"What the question probably should have said is, will you have the Covid vaccine, will you be first to have it? And of course, I think that the answer for that will be no, I'll wait 'til everyone else has had it.

"There's always doubt among the anti-vax[xers], but there's now a sufficient doubt among this undecided population.

"I'm very, very concerned, I don't think public health has had this challenge [before] ... because there haven't been social media and these kinds of online influences."

Global spread of vaccine hesitancy

Johnson told CNN that in Africa, misinformation is spreading about the program being used as a cover to sterilize swathes of the population. "The fear about that is actually huge in developing countries now," he said.

Countering the objections

"There's clearly cause for concern; the emphasis on speed, on rushing a new vaccine," Jeremy Ward, who published a study on vaccine hesitancy with French research consortium Coconel in The Lancet in May, told CNN.

"I think the main factor is trust in institutions," said Ward. He said coronavirus debates in France had become highly politicized. Coconel's study found that those who had voted for a far-left or far-right candidate, or didn't vote at all, were much more likely to say that they would refuse a vaccine.

His research suggests that Russia could have more vaccine refusers than any other country.

Ratzan said the issue isn't just the inaccurate information, it's the growing lack of trust in institutions. "I think we're starting to see these two factors really wear down the public psyche and vaccine acceptance along with it, which is a huge concern," he said.

An earlier CUNY School of Public Health Covid-19 study found that just 42% of likely vaccine refusers in New York would be swayed by approval from the FDA or Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Several surveys and reports found hesitancy among Black and ethnic minority communities, which are disproportionately affected by the virus.

Time to prepare

Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of WHO's Health Emergencies Program, said in a Thursday briefing: "People need to be allowed to have a conversation about vaccines, and have a proper conversation. It's not a one-way street. It's not about shoving things down people's throats. It's about having a proper discussion, good information, good discussion on this -- and people will make up their own minds."

"I think science and government have a job to do that is to make the case. I think communities and people have a job to do, which is to listen to that case, and hopefully the result of that will be a widely accepted successful vaccine that could bring this pandemic to an end," Ryan said.

Experts say we need a strategy for when a vaccine is produced, covering who will receive one first, how and where it will be distributed, possible different options, and how concerns will be addressed.

Ward emphasized that this is not just about convincing people a vaccine is safe but about doing everything possible to ensure it really is. "When you produce a new vaccine with such speed, it's not just communication, it's also transparency and making the right decisions," he said.

Community groups including the National Black Church Initiative have been working to ensure sufficient numbers of African Americans participate in vaccine trials. Ratzan said involvement from respected community members was vital to ensure people feel "they're being listened to, their concerns are met, and that the vaccine they are getting is held to the highest standards of safety and efficacy."

The timeline is vital. Ratzan added that with a new medicine, 18 months could be spent working with companies, medical groups and doctors and thinking about branding, social media or text campaigns. "We don't have any of that now," he said.

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Vaccines are safe. But huge numbers of people around the world say they wouldn't take a Covid jab - CNN