Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist is looking to build confidence in a future COVID-19 vaccine, encouraging communities of color to get it when its widely available.
Related: MI task force made significant progress protecting minority communities from COVID-19, report says
According to Gilchrist, the COVID-19 Task Force on Racial Disparities will work in the coming months to address fears, concerns, questions and apprehensions in minorities communities throughout the state.
Gilchrist said that past large-scale medical interventions have left a bad impression on communities of color, particularly for Black people, but the vaccine is key to helping fight back the virus.
"The vaccine coming is a good thing, but the presence of a vaccine only matters if people get vaccinated. It’ll be critical that we vaccinate as many people as possible," Gilchrist said.
The task force will listen and answer all questions about vaccine safety and efficacy, and Gilchrist said he will publicly get vaccinated at an appropriate time.
This week, former presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton all said they would plan to get a COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available to them, and would take it publicly to show the safety and importance of vaccinations.
Additional Coronavirus information and resources:
Click here for a page with resources including a COVID-19 overview from the CDC, details on cases in Michigan, a timeline of Governor Gretchen Whitmer's orders since the outbreak, coronavirus' impact on Southeast Michigan, and links to more information from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the CDC and the WHO.
View a global coronavirus tracker with data from Johns Hopkins University.