Coronavirus Vaccine Update: Only 18% Of Black Americans Trust Vaccine Effectiveness

As the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise in the U.S., only 18% percent of Black Americans trust the effectiveness of coronavirus vaccines, according to a study.

The study also found that just 28% of the nation's Black people believe the vaccines have been tested specifically for safety in their racial group, Langer Research Associates reported.

Additionally, three-quarters of Black Americans said they are not more likely to choose a vaccine even after receiving emergency-use approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The research polled Black Americans who closely follow the news regarding the coronavirus pandemic as well as those who don’t. Among respondents who follow COVID-19 news, 70% said they were likely to trust reports from White House infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci. The number dropped to 18% among Blacks who do not follow pandemic news closely.

Black Americans have been disproportionately affected by the coronavirus pandemic. At least 55% of Black respondents said they know a person who has tested positive for COVID-19, while 48% said they know someone who has been hospitalized or has died from the infection.

Langer Research Associates — which partnered with Unidos U.S., NAACP, and COVID Collaborative — collected responses from 1,050 Black adults.

The number of COVID-19 infections across the country has been rising rapidly ever since large outbreaks were reported in the Upper Midwest in September. On Monday, the U.S. reported 142,732 new cases and hit another record-high in the number of hospitalizations for the 13th consecutive day, the Wall Street Journal reported.

More than 83,800 people were hospitalized with coronavirus as of Sunday, surpassing the 60,000 reported on Nov. 10. The country’s seven-day average of new cases has risen to 170,855. Health officials reported 921 new coronavirus-related deaths on Sunday.

The U.S. has recorded more than 12.4 million coronavirus cases and 257,651 deaths since the pandemic began in March. The country still leads the world for the most number of COVID-19 cases and deaths.

India, which closely follows the U.S., has recorded 9.1 million cases, while Brazil comes in third with 169,485 deaths as of Tuesday, Johns Hopkins University reported.