Joint Press Release:
St. Mary’s County NAACP #7025
The Minority Outreach Coalition of St. Mary’s County
St. Mary’s County Health Department
LEONARDTOWN, MD (February 19, 2021) – The St. Mary’s County Health Department (SMCHD), in partnership with the St. Mary’s County NAACP #7025 and the Minority Outreach Coalition (MOC) of St. Mary’s County, is launching a new local Get Out the Vax campaign. Get Out the Vax is a partnership to get information about COVID-19 vaccine to minority residents, better understand and address concerns community members may have about vaccination, and support the equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccine in St. Mary’s County.
SMCHD, St. Mary’s County NAACP #7025, and the MOC will host a Get Out the Vax virtual community forum on Saturday, February 27, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. toprovide information on local vaccination efforts and to discuss the importance of health equity as it relates to the COVID-19 vaccine. All community members are welcome to participate – the forum will be streamed live online via the:
- St. Mary’s County NAACP #7025 YouTube Channel
- St. Mary’s County NAACP #7025 Facebook Page
- St. Mary’s County Health Department Facebook Page
For more information on Get Out the Vax, please contact either the:
- St. Mary’s County NAACP #7025 at (301) 863-3011 or stmarysnaacp@gmail.com
- Minority Outreach Coalition at (240) 538-5681 or mocstmarys@gmail.com
“We’ve seen the numbers and understand that minorities have not received the vaccine at the rates that reflect our county’s population, infection rate, or death rate. We are working with our community and partner organizations like the Health Department to correct this disconnect by attacking barriers to receiving vaccination and addressing possible vaccine hesitancy,” said William Hall, St. Mary’s County NAACP President.
“If you get the spot – take the shot,” encourages Nathaniel Scroggins, MOC Director.
“We know that this pandemic has disproportionately impacted minorities when it comes to COVID-related illness and death,” said Dr. Meena Brewster, St. Mary’s County Health Officer. “Our public health team is grateful for this partnership with our local Minority Outreach Coalition and NAACP chapter to make sure our community members have the vaccine information they need from sources they trust.”
For more information about local COVID-19 vaccination, please visit the St. Mary’s County Health Department website at: www.smchd.org/covid-19-vaccine. For more information on SMCHD efforts to advance health equity, please visit: www.smchd.org/equity.
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