Vaccine Politics In Light of the COVID-19

Pandemic
The discovery of COVID-19 vaccinations that are both safe and effective gives a clear route to ending the
epidemic. However, vaccination rates have been insufficient to prevent disease transmission. Politics is a
significant element in why many individuals refuse to vaccinate. A path model is created and tested in
this study to investigate the effects of political opinions on vaccination rates and COVID-19 cases and
fatalities per 100,000 persons in counties across the United States. The data substantially backed up the
model. Vaccination rates were much lower in counties with many Republican voters, and COVID-19
infections and fatalities per 100,000 persons were much higher 1.

However, months after the COVID-19 immunization procedure began, the epidemic raged in many
nations worldwide. This is primarily because the fraction of the population immunized against the illness
in these nations is insufficient to achieve 'herd immunity.' As of September 1, 2021, almost 175 million
people in the United States have been completely immunized against COVID-19. This represented just
61.6% of eligible people (those aged 12 and above at the time) and 52.7% of the overall population.
There are two critical reasons for low immunization rates. First, particularly in poor countries, the
number of vaccines available has been insufficient, as they can reach specific population sectors. The
widespread adoption of COVID-19 vaccinations that are both safe and efficacious provides a transparent
approach to ending the COVID-19 epidemic. Unfortunately, vaccination rates have not been sufficient to
halt disease transmission. Political beliefs are an essential element in vaccination resistance. Politics has
significantly influenced COVID-19 reactions to the epidemic in the United States. Democrats were far
more inclined than Republicans to take the virus's threat seriously and support attempts to contain it 2.
Politics has also had a significant impact on public perception of COVID-19 vaccinations. Research has
found an essential link between political beliefs and vaccine uptake in the United States and other
nations. This research repeatedly found political conservatives to be more vaccination-resistant 3.

Around 24% of the world's population had gotten at least one vaccine dosage
as of the second week of July 2021. However, just 1% of individuals in
underdeveloped nations were vaccinated at the outset 4. To put the vast
difference in vaccination rates into perspective, among the top 30 countries
most affected by COVID-19, 69.6% of Canadians have gotten at least one
dose of vaccine, compared to 1.8% of Iraqis. The figures represent structural
disparities and injustices in the global health order, extending previous
political and economic differences.

1
Webster RG, Shortridge KF, Kawaoka Y. Influenza: interspecies transmission and emergence of new
pandemics. Immunol Med Microbiol. 1997;18(4):275–9.
2
Sun Y, Monnat SM. Rural-urban and within-rural differences in COVID-19 vaccination rates. J Rural
Health. 2021;37:1–7.
3
Brooks MM, Mueller JT, Thiede BC. Rural-urban differences in the labor-force impacts of COVID-19 in the
United States. Socius. 2021;7:1–12.
4
Emanuel, EJ, Persad, G, Kern, A, Buchanan, A, Fabre, C, Halliday, D, et al. An Ethical Framework
for Global Vaccine Allocation. Science (2020) 369(6509):1309–12. doi:10.1126/science.abe2803