DOVER – A commentary in the New York Times caught my eye a few days ago.
The headline: “Meet the four kinds of people holding us back from full vaccination.”
A Surgo Ventures national study of Facebook users, which ended in April, broke the responses down by state.
At 17%, Delaware topped all states in percentage of people with a wait-and-see attitude.
This and other mindsets led the private think tank Surgo to suggest reasons why COVID-19 vaccinations are now flagging across the country.
The pace has slowed dramatically in Delaware.
The average number of daily vaccinations in April: 9,477.
The average in May: 4,525.
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Surgo identified five vaccine personas: Enthusiasts, Watchful, Cost-anxious, System Distrusters and COVID-19 Skeptics. The latter four are the ones Surgo says are “holding us back.”
Here are the Delaware numbers (national averages) and Surgo’s descriptions:
• 17% (8% nationally) are Watchful. They are waiting to see what happens next.
• 5% (9% nationally) are Cost-Anxious. They want the vaccine but cannot afford the time or cost.
• 2% (4% nationally) are System Distrusters. They feel the health care system does not treat them fairly.
• 13% (14% nationally) are COVID Skeptics. They do not believe the threat.
As for Enthusiasts, Delaware came in at 3% – among the bottom seven states.
To get the “watchful” to make the leap, the report said states should: “Make it visible that others are vaccinated or have positive intent to be vaccinated. Encourage sharing of stories among members of their communities and networks like them who have been vaccinated — stories are often more powerful than numbers.”
The report said this group is among those most likely to wear masks, “showing an intent to comply with social norms.”
The column in the New York Times, written by Surgo Ventures CEO and Harvard professor Sema K. Sgaier, pointed to additional background data in the study (see surgoventures.org).
“The conventional approach to understanding whether someone will get vaccinated is asking people how likely they are to get the vaccine and then building a demographic profile based on their answers: Black, White, Latinx, Republican, Democrat,” she wrote. “But this process isn’t enough: Just knowing that Republicans are less likely to get vaccinated doesn’t tell us how to get them vaccinated. It’s more important to understand why people are still holding out, where those people live and how to reach them.”
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The study, while offering some insight into many people’s reasons for reluctance, does not offer a true picture of the number of people who have received shots.
However, the current numbers may suggest that many of the formerly “watchful” have now received shots.
According to the U.S. Department of Health, Delaware ranks 19th among all states in the number of people who are fully vaccinated.
The federal data shows 50.1 percent of the state’s population has received one dose, and 38.5 percent are now fully vaccinated.
During his weekly briefing on Tuesday, Delaware Gov. John Carney said more than 350,000 Delawareans are now fully vaccinated.
For Delawareans 16 and older, 63% have at least one dose.
The governor said 71% is the goal.
By county, Sussex County has 61.2% of the population with at least one dose.
Second most is New Castle with 57.5%.
And, lagging, is Kent with 48.4%.
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The Surgo report’s vaccination attitude report helps shed some light on how Delawareans are reacting to the lifting of mask requirements in most settings and the state’s honor system for compliance.
The Delaware State News pays attention to what people are saying, on our forums for opinions and on other social media channels. We have seen examples of the Surgo personas’ attitudes.
One Delawarean posted on Facebook during Gov. John Carney’s briefing, “I am not an anti-vaxxer but I am waiting this one out. Until then, I have no problem admitting that I have not had the COVID-19 vaccine and I will continue wearing my mask in public places. Honestly, if we are going on the honor system, just how many people do you really think have not been vaccinated and aren’t wearing a mask? There will be many.”
Another wrote, “Isn’t it great how hateful and judgmental this country has become to our fellow citizens. For decades, the flu has killed thousands of people each year. Many people get their flu vaccine each year, but many choose not to for various reasons. No one judged you or hated you one way or the other. Now we are still in the same ‘church, but different pew’ with COVID-19.”
And one more, “It sounds like you are pitting vaccinated people against non-vaccinated people, and the only way to live a normal life is to take a non-FDA approved vaccine.”
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Today’s column is not intended to take a side in the vaccination debate.
However, we would like to hear from readers about why they have, or have not, been vaccinated.
Send a letter to the editor to newsroom@newszap.com.
By Andrew West
