COLUMBIA, S.C. — To get vaccinated or not?
It's the question many South Carolinians hesitant about the shots are facing, and a sign of worry for healthcare officials hoping to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
“The slowing of vaccine demand right now is a concern. I’d ask people not be complacent about this because it’s not just the current variants that are circulating, but as time goes on, this virus will continue to mutate because that’s what viruses do for a living," Assistant State Epidemiologist Dr. Jane Kelly said. "We want to get people vaccinated now, so that we get those variants under control now."
While more than 1.1 million South Carolinians are fully vaccinated, according to DHEC data, the majority have yet to roll up their sleeves.
Despite this, Dr. Kelly says herd immunity is within reach, but it won't be instant and it likely won't mean the virus is gone for good.
“The issue with the new variants, at least right now, is not that they’re more lethal, but they spread more easily, they’re more contagious. So, of course, the more cases you get, that inevitably means you’re going to have more people who do get severe illness and death,” Kelly said. "I do think that it will become endemic… what does endemic mean? It’s ever-present. It continues to circulate just like the common cold, but a critical difference is if we get people vaccinated now even if the virus continues to mutate, you get new variants, you will still be at least partially protected, which means you would be protected from severe disease.”
Her message Wednesday was "don't delay," and tell a friend when vaccinated to spread the word that the shots are safe and effective.