BOSTON (WHDH) - Gov. Charlie Baker on Thursday highlighted data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that shows Massachusetts has the lowest COVID-19 hesitancy rate in America.
“The vast majority of the people in the Commonwealth are interested in getting vaccinated,” Baker said during a news conference that followed a tour of a vaccination site in Pittsfield. “Recently published data from the CDC shows that Massachusetts has the lowest hesitancy rate in the nation with all of our counties showing hesitancy rates that are well below 10 percent. People in Massachusetts are eager to get vaccinated.”
While Massachusetts remains the leader among big states in administering vaccines, Baker stressed that his administration remains focused on vaccine equity.
“We know that not every community is equal and that we still have a lot of work to do in communities of color, which have borne the brunt of this pandemic in many ways,” Baker said. “That’s why we’ve been doubling down on our efforts to keep people informed about vaccine safety and efficacy.”
Those efforts include a $30 million initiative “focused on breaking down barriers to getting vaccinations” to disproportionately affected communities, according to the Baker.
In addition to a public awareness campaign that includes multilingual television advertisements about vaccine safety and importance, Baker said the state will continue its door-to-door canvassing efforts to get vaccines to people in the 20 hardest-hit communities.
“We made a lot of progress to get our population vaccinated. I think most people know that this is a big part of getting back to normal,” Baker said. “We’ll stay focused on providing access to everyone who wants to get a vaccine.”
Baker estimated that everyone who wants a shot should be able to get one by the end of June, but said he is hopeful that the federal vaccine supply will increase before then.
Massachusetts passed the milestone of more the two million fully vaccinated residents over the weekend, and Baker said the state ranks first in the nation in both first doses and total doses administered.
Vaccine appointments are now open to all residents over the age of 16.
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