Covid surging among unvaxxed Tri-Citians. It’s time to trust doctors instead of internet

What’s it going to take to convince Tri-Citians to get the COVID vaccine?

When the unvaxxed account for 97% of new COVID cases in our community, you’d think people would get the hint.

When doctors at Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland say 99.5% of ICU patients being treated for COVID over the last several months are unvaccinated, you’d think people would realize their odds of staying out of the hospital are better if they get a COVID shot.

But logic unfortunately does not seem to be making a difference.

Cases of the delta variant are exploding in the Tri-Cities, with COVID cases doubling in just the last 18 days, according to Dr. Amy Person, health officer for Benton and Franklin counties.

Health officials at Kadlec said COVID patients are taking up beds and staff time, and that’s been forcing them to send seriously ill people out of town to other health care facilities.

Maxing out Washington state hospitals was the primary concern throughout 2020, and here we are a year later struggling with the same problem. Only this time, the situation is even more frustrating because it could be avoided.

We have a vaccine against COVID that is safe and effective. It is the answer to the pandemic — the reason we were able to ditch our masks a month ago and open up businesses and get back to normal.

But now, even vaccinated people are going to have to wear masks indoors in public places because the disease is spreading and we need a stop-gap measure to slow it down. Dr. Person announced the decision Thursday, which echoes the latest recommendation by the Centers for Disease Control.

With so many unvaxxed Tri-Citians, we could see an out-of-control spread of COVID if we don’t take precautions again.

This is so disappointing.

Franklin County has the highest number of COVID cases in the state and Benton County is the third highest.

At the same time, vaccination rates in the two counties are lagging, with Benton County at 47% for people ages 12 and older fully vaccinated and 40% in Franklin County.

That compares to 61% of all eligible Washington state residents being fully protected.

Judging by Facebook comments whenever the Herald posts a story on increasing COVID numbers, too many Tri-Citians are dismissing the disease.

“They don’t think it’s a big deal,” said Dr. Person.

But it is.

Dr. Person told the Herald that sadly, many people who resisted the COVID vaccine finally ask for it when they get sick and are either getting a COVID test or are being admitted to the hospital.

By then, it’s too late. Vaccines don’t cure disease; they help keep you from getting them in the first place.

After a person has recovered from COVID, it is recommended they get the vaccine to make sure they don’t get it again.

How to get the message across is a struggle. Too many people don’t trust anything offered by the government, and there is so much misinformation on the internet about the COVID vaccine that people are confused.

That’s why Washington state is now trying a different approach to encourage people to get their COVID shots.

It’s called the Power of Providers Initiative, which is an attempt to put the COVID vaccine in doctors’ offices.

Dr. Person said the mass vaccination sites were necessary in order to reach as many people as possible when the COVID shots were first made available.

But that perhaps sent a message to people that the COVID vaccine was somehow different from other vaccines. The idea now is to encourage doctors to actively ask their patients if they have received their COVID shots, and if they haven’t, explain to them the benefits of getting it.

Too many people believe social media and weird conspiracy theories. If they get information from someone they trust — like their family physician — perhaps they won’t be so fearful.

It’s a strategy that’s at least worth a shot. COVID is taking hold among the unvaccinated and spreading like crazy.

We have the tools to reduce the spread to a crawl, we just have to convince people to use them.

This story was originally published July 30, 2021 at 5:00 AM.