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A Rural Evangelical Pastor Helps Community Overcome COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy

Published April 30, 2021 at 1:52 PM EDT
A medical worker draws COVID-19 vaccine during a vaccination event at Washington National Cathedral on March 16, 2021 in Washington, D.C. The Washington National Cathedral hosted the public vaccination event to help demonstrate trust by faith leaders of all denominations in the COVID-19 vaccines and encourage vaccine-hesitant Americans (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
A medical worker draws COVID-19 vaccine during a vaccination event at Washington National Cathedral on March 16, 2021 in Washington, D.C. The Washington National Cathedral hosted the public vaccination event to help demonstrate trust by faith leaders of all denominations in the COVID-19 vaccines and encourage vaccine-hesitant Americans (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Almost half of the 41 million white evangelical Christians in the U.S. say they won’t get the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a February poll by the Pew Research Center. Rural Americans are also less likely to get the vaccine.

So trusted members of local communities are playing a key role in helping people overcome vaccine hesitancy.

Here & Now’s Peter O’Dowd speaks with Pastor Sean Daniels of the Friendship Missionary Baptists Church in Cawood, Kentucky, about what he’s doing to calm fears and doubts to encourage people to get vaccinated.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.