Into the Black Doctors Vetting the Vaccine

For six months, people across the country have been waiting for the same lifeline: a vaccine for the coronavirus. The U.S. government has pledged $10 billion to help drug makers develop and distribute a vaccine in record time through “Operation Warp Speed.”

But the emphasis on swiftness has left some people worried about the vaccine’s safety and efficacy. California and New York have said they will assemble their own independent task forces to vet the vaccine, and recently, the National Medical Association, the oldest and largest organization for Black physicians, has said they will do the same.

The NMA’s longstanding role as trusted messengers in the Black community could prove crucial, because polling shows Black Americans are less likely than other groups to say they will get a coronavirus vaccine.

Host Trymaine Lee talks with Dr. Rodney Hood, an internal medicine physician and health equity advocate in San Diego who came up with the idea for the NMA’s task force. Dr. Hood describes why the task force is necessary, and how centuries of structural racism in medicine has led to generational health issues and heightened mistrust.

For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica.

Further Reading and Viewing:

‘We are the trusted messengers in our community’: Watch NMA president on MSNBC • A COVID-19 vaccine will work only if trials include Black participants, experts say • 2 HBCU presidents join COVID-19 vaccine trial — and recommend students do the same •