Essentia Health is collaborating with a coalition of 60 of America’s top hospitals and health care institutions on a nationwide campaign to encourage adults to get vaccinated for COVID-19.

The Cleveland Clinic and Mayo Clinic are leading the “Get the Vaccine to Save Lives” campaign. This campaign is designed to reassure the public that vaccines are safe, effective and necessary to achieve herd immunity and return to normal activities.

In the press release, Essentia says the campaign hopes to reach adults who are hesitant to receive the vaccine, including racial and minority ethnic groups and people living in rural communities. According to a Kaiser Family Foundation survey published March 30, seventeen percent of the public say they will take a “wait-and-see” approach before getting it themselves, and another twenty percent say they will never get the vaccine unless required to do so for work or school.

Essentia Health says that leaves a significant portion of the population at risk of going unvaccinated. They also mention, leading health officials say at least 75% of the population needs to receive a vaccine to achieve herd immunity. With a lot of opinions on the safety of the vaccine, Essentia Health’s chief medical officer, Dr. Peter Henry offered a response:

“We are all ambassadors for our organization and as health care workers — whether clinical or not — we are looked upon by our community as examples of the right thing to do. We are obligated to do all we can to dispel myths about the vaccine and encourage people to get vaccinated against COVID-19.”

As of April 14, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report more than 195 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered and 48% of the population age eighteen and older has received at least one vaccine dose.

By — Chris Burns