UVA Health Vaccine Confidence Virtual Town Halls

As more Virginians become eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, a team of doctors at University of Virginia Health, joined by more than 50 scientific experts from across the United States including virologists and infectious disease specialists, are participating in a series of virtual town halls to answer the public’s questions about the development, deployment and safety of all vaccine options.

Each town hall is hosted by pairs or groups of experts, and the sessions run about 45 minutes using Zoom. They are slated to continue throughout the spring and summer.

UVA Health scientist Dan Engel and physician Ebony Hilton fielded a wide range of questions during a town hall in March to help people make informed decisions, as reported in a story on NBC29.com. Questions and answers covered everything from efficacy to equity to skepticism. Hilton volunteered to receive the first vaccine at UVA to demonstrate it was safe and effective. She documented her experiences with the vaccine on social media.

Hilton explained that while there has been lots of focus on distrust from Black Americans early in the rollout, new data shows many other Americans are hesitant too. She pointed out that deaths from COVID-19 among white Americans have hit record highs.

Both Hilton and Engel agreed that the rising numbers aren’t the only reason getting the COVID-19 vaccine is important. New variants play a role too. According to Engel, “The science is saying if everyone gets vaccinated who can be vaccinated, the closer that we get to herd immunity, the fewer variants that are going to come out.”

A commonly asked question is how long antibodies from the vaccine last in a person’s body. Experts at the town halls admitted they still don’t know, but as the country reaches the six-month mark since clinical trials, there’s good reason to be optimistic about the lasting power of the vaccine.

“We’re getting data that the vaccine immunity is stable for at least six months, which is really good news,” Engel said. “But as any physician or scientist is going to tell you, we have to wait for the data.”

During the town halls, physicians and scientists stress that the available vaccines are good at preventing severe COVID-19 and that getting a shot is the best way to keep everyone safe.

“Reaching that herd immunity where we allow that virus to be snuffed out, for lack of a better word, from being able to be circulated from person to person, is going to be our best bet to getting back to normal and keeping ourselves alive to see 2022,” Hilton said.

For more information about the COVID-19 vaccines, visit the UVA Health COVID-19 Vaccine FAQs webpage. Read the full story and watch the NBC29 video.