# Lessons Learnt From COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy: The Role of Culturally Concordant Providers

## TL;DR

The paper explores how culturally concordant providers can help reduce vaccine hesitancy among minority groups in the US, especially in light of the disparities seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.

## Contribution

The paper introduces a new model for understanding vaccine hesitancy called the 6C model, based on lessons learned from the pandemic.

## Key findings

- Minority groups, especially African Americans and Hispanics, show higher vaccine hesitancy compared to White residents.
- Culturally concordant providers can significantly improve vaccine uptake in minority communities.
- Political influences are increasingly affecting vaccine hesitancy and need to be addressed in future preparedness.

## Abstract

Vaccine uptake during the pandemic had varied widely within the US with the lowest rates of vaccine uptake in predominantly southern states. While vaccine hesitancy is prevalent in the public, higher rates of vaccine hesitancy are seen among African Americans and Hispanics. The discrepant vaccine hesitancy is salient since minorities have been particularly hit hard by the pandemic with disproportionately higher rates of infection and morbidity. Recent data show disparities in vaccination rates among minorities in some parts of the US showing White residents to be twice as likely to receive the COVID-19 vaccine compared to their Black counterparts. This perspective discusses factors related to higher vaccine hesitancy among minorities and outlines the experience of a culturally concordant physician champion improving vaccine uptake at an academic medical center. Lessons from the last pandemic might help us better prepare for future ones and cope with a changing landscape that fosters political influence on vaccine uptake. Based on the lessons, we propose a new model for vaccine hesitancy, the 6C model.