Video: Opinion | Dying in the Name of Vaccine Freedom – The New York Times

Its hard to watch the pandemic drag on as Americans refuse the vaccine in the name of freedom. Youre talking about an unproven, untested vaccine that doesnt even seem to really protect people, because people whove gotten the vaccine are getting sick. I went to one of the places with the worst vaccination rate. I dont want a poison forced into me. Im tired of you all trying to control us. One of the best things we have is our own God-given natural antibodies. It also has one of the worst Covid case rates in the country. The Ozarks. I dont take the flu shot. I dont take the pneumonia shot. I dont take any of them. I wanted to find out why residents here arent getting vaccinated. Youre trying to mask these kids up. Its detrimental to their health. And what, if anything, could convince them otherwise. Hey, Mr. Green, its Dr. Martin here. How are you? I heard you had kind of a rough night last night. Christopher Green is 53 years old and fighting for his life. Like 90 percent of the patients in this packed hospital, hes unvaccinated. Hes just walking a very thin tightrope right now. And to be honest, I dont expect him to get out of this without being on a ventilator. And if he has to be on a ventilator, I dont expect him to survive. I immediately asked Christopher, why hadnt he gotten the vaccine? It was eerie to hear Christopher insist on his individual freedoms, even as he struggled to breathe. Do you think other people should get it? Christopher represents a genuine challenge. Do the American values of individual choice have to take priority over public health? By the time theyre here, what can you do, you know? And when somebody is in a room really, really sick and cant breathe and suffering I mean, its just not a good time for a lecture. But the result in a place like Mountain Home is a 36 percent vaccination rate. And people are dying. Let everyone live their own life. I heard this over and over. Freedom. Choice. Dont do it because somebodys pressuring you to do it. Everyone has the right to choose. Almost everyone I met in Mountain Home told me they knew someone who died from Covid. Most people are undoubtedly concerned about the pandemic here. It didnt feel to me like a QAnon convention. Misinformation certainly exists here. But a powerful force behind the hesitancy is this fundamental idea of personal freedom. But in a community where individual rights are taking precedence over everything else, you get endless individual reasons not to get vaccinated, like believing the vaccine doesnt work. A preference for hearsay. He had heard that the people that were spreading the virus were people that had already had the vaccine and that they were carriers. Straight-up fear. How just people having reactions. Even among those who overcame their hesitancy, theres a lack of urgency. I dont really have any reasons to be out in circulation with the rest of the public. I just enjoy my dogs and work out on the farm and raise my koi fish. With all these reasons not to get vaccinated floating around, it makes it hard for those who actually do want it. I have a parent who does not necessarily support vaccinations. It was hard because she asked me where I was going. I was like, Oh, Im going to get vaccinated. And she was not very happy with that. What struck me was that Mary Beth had the courage to go against the grain. People should be more concerned about the well-being of those around them, because I feel like not enough people are thinking about other people when they make the decision not to get the vaccine. Theres an irony in someone rebelling against a culture of individualism for the good of their community. But voices like Mary Beths are drowned out by leaders who are contradicting public health officials. No. The state is not going to be requiring and mandating vaccinations. And I dont believe anyone should be forced to take the vaccine. It should be your personal choice. These vaccines are always voluntary and never forced. We dont have to accept the mandates, lockdowns and harmful policies and the petty tyrants and bureaucrats. We can either have a free society or we can have a biomedical security state. Theres no better place to see the impact of this political rhetoric than in the hospital. Only about 50 percent of the staff are vaccinated. None of the unvaccinated staffers were willing to talk. There are just a lot of people that you cannot convince to get vaccinated patients, employees. Its very frustrating. Its sad. Its I dont know its disappointing. Just a few months ago, the staff was planning a cookout to celebrate the end of Covid. But instead of barbecuing, theyre now battling another surge. Its exhausting. Were all exhausted. We dont have staff. We dont have beds. One obvious way out is to mandate the vaccine. But in April, the governor signed a law banning government mask mandates and vaccine passports. That shifts the responsibility mostly to private entities. Vaccine requirements as part of employment, attending school or participating in sports are reluctantly motivating some to overcome their hesitancy. It seems to me that the only other thing that actually sways people here is being in the hospital. And I really am upset at myself because I did not get vaccinated. I just Ive never hurt like Ive hurt. Its made a believer out of me. This is what freedom looks like in America today. Its always been complicated. But political leaders should remember that this country was also founded on the idea that government should protect us. After all, in a pandemic, one persons freedom can be another persons death. Christopher Green died nine days after this interview. He was 53 years old.

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Video: Opinion | Dying in the Name of Vaccine Freedom - The New York Times