Drop in demand for vaccines in South Carolina, medical authorities warn

Columbia, South Carolina – Low demand for vaccines is reported in the past period in South Carolina. According to health experts, if this trend continues, the fight against Covid-19 will be almost impossible.

Authorities say that at least 80% of the populations should be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity. As of now, around 40% of the South Carolinians have received at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccines.

“It is still a challenge, we are still on this treadmill to get there with getting herd immunity,” Assistant State Epidemiologist Dr. Jane Kelly said.

Lately, a low demand trend is seen across the state. This is especially notable at the mass vaccination sites like the one at Columbia Place Mall.

“We can have these all day long we can have this run all year long, it doesn’t matter if people aren’t showing up to this or maybe to an appointment they set up with their provider,” Brandon Lavorgna with SCEMD said. “If they’re not getting the shot in the arm, it will not matter.”

The lower demand may result in spike in numbers again as well as many other variants. On a long run, this means delay in “getting back to normal” state.

“The more people get vaccinated, the fewer infections there will be, which means fewer variants will emerge, and fewer breakthrough infections will occur and the quicker we can get back to doing the things we love,” Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said.

Health officials want citizens to know that the shot is safe and they are doing what it takes to make the process more convenient.

“You can get in and out of here in 30 minutes. We can handle up to a thousand folks a day, it’s open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. to accommodate people’s work schedules,” Jennifer Hart, a nurse at the mass vaccination site, said. “They have intentionally put it close to a bus line, close to an interstate to try to make it as successful as possible.”