Need to acknowledge past racial disparities to build up trust, surgeon general says
U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams appeared on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday and discussed the skepticism from many African Americans about the COVID-19 vaccine and how the community can be convinced it's safe and effective.
Adams said acknowledging the history of medical racism and what's still happening in the U.S. today is key.
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"I've talked about Tuskegee. I've talked about Henrietta Lacks. But there are real issues going on today, right now in this country, when you look at 700 women dying of pregnancy-related complications, most of them black and brown in the United States. When you look at not just hypertension and cancer disparities," Adams said.
The surgeon general said health equity is critical.
"We need to engage with trusted influencers. We need to make sure our pastors, and imams and rabbis, all of whom I'm working with, have the facts so that they can spread it to -- to their congregants," he said. "I want people to know that as a scientist, as a doctor, I've looked at the data. I know the protections that are in place. I know an African-American female helped develop this vaccine and Tony Fauci and I made sure that the trials were enrolled with diverse participants."