Buffalo, NY (WBEN) -Now that a large portion of the US population has been vaccinated for COVID-19, efforts are underway to continue to increase the percentage of those vaccinated and a push is underway to reach out to less populated rural areas.
In Western New York, vaccination rates have been lagging in Chautauqua and Cattaraugus Counties compared to Erie and Niagara Counties. Health leaders in these rural counties say there are various reasons why, and they add there's no problem with vaccine supply.
In Cattaraugus County, public health director Dr. Kevin Watkins says about 34 percent of the population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, which he says is concerning, considering it's lagging behind other counties across the state.
"Often times, rural counties lag behind urban communities. and for this COVID19 vaccine itself, just a quick survey says individuals were concerned about the warp speed with how the vaccine was developed," says Watkins. "They just wanted to wait to see how things panned overall, and that's some of the hesitancy we're seeing here."
Watkins says the younger population is more skeptical about the vaccine. "The younger population, the younger they are, the more invincible they feel that there will not be severe complications if they contract the virus," explains Watkins.
There is another section of the population hesitant about getting the vaccine. "We have a sector who are Amish and have a religious reason behind the hesitancy or will not get vaccinated in this rural community," says Watkins.
Watkins says supply exceeds demand to the point of holding off on ordering more vaccine. "We see our scheduling system does not have a lot of activity," says Watkins. "We have a lot of work to do internally to reach that group who is more concerned about the vaccine and answer their questions, and at least convince the population about the efficiency and safety of the vaccine."
In Chautauqua County, public health director Christine Schuyler says the county is around 40 percent vaccinated with at least one dose.
"We can speculate on various reasons why the vaccine rates seem to be lower in rural counties than in suburban and urban counties. I think Erie and Niagara Counties were fortunate to have state vaccination sites that really augmented their vaccination efforts," says Schuyler. "Another obvious reason is the rural nature of our counties. Some people could have transportation issues to get to our major sites where we ran clinics, or lack of motivation to travel or make an appointment to go a distance to get the vaccination."
Schuyler says the county has done well in getting people who want to be vaccinated to receive doses. "We're shifting our strategy to take the vaccine to the people. If it's readily available at your worksite, your school, or your community center, then you make it so convenient for those who haven't gotten it because it wasn't convenient, will take a few minutes to get the vaccine," says Schuyler.
Schuyler says vaccine supply is plentiful, not just through the county, but at pharmacies and hospitals at all. "There should be no problem getting a vaccine by walking in," notes Schuyler.
Schuyler does believe the actual rate may not be accurate. "Chautauqua County is bordered on two sides by Pennsylvania, two of our hospitals are affiliated with a Pennsylvania hospital system, and many seek medical care there, visit there, shop there. We also have snowbirds who get their vaccinations in southern states. Because states don't share data, as many state attorneys general don't like, states cannot share vaccination data," explains Schuyler.
