FDA approves first COVID-19 vaccine, will Americans take it?

Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine became the first United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved COVID-19 vaccine. With FDA approval federal vaccine mandates for government workers and military personnel is now possible.

Approval of the first COVID-19 vaccine potentially paves the way for the vaccine to be required in universities across the country.

FDA approval for the life-saving immunization may mean people once hesitant to get the vaccine under FDA’s emergency authorization of the vaccine may change their minds. As the death toll across America continues to rise and more data shows the effectiveness of the vaccine, we hope that FDA approval will get more Americans vaccinated.

America, with almost 190 million adults vaccinated, still has an alarming number of people dying from the virus. With almost 650,000 deaths and still rising, how is scientific evidence not enough?

Wearing a mask is not cowardice, getting a vaccine is not fear, it’s being respectful to others and not wanting the world to shut down once again. The Delta variant of this deadly virus has only shown us more how much we need this vaccine.

It has been shown in countries that mandate vaccines and masks that death rates and cases are significantly lower. If the vaccine is mandated federally, it will eventually become a requirement for all – much like polio and even chicken pox. This could potentially lead to herd immunity in America.

With hopes of the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines to be FDA approved we must ask ourselves what is the right thing to do for our country, and how can we return to normalcy?

Is it more patriotic to hide behind your freedom or wear a mask in public places for the safety of others? Is it America the brave? Or, America – the can’t wear a mask to save a life?