William Brangham spoke with local public media reporters in Georgia, Missouri and Tennessee about the challenges for vaccine rollouts in their regions. Sebastián Martínez Valdivia of KBIA in Columbia, Missouri, noted stark differences between urban areas, where people clamored for vaccines in short supply, and rural regions, where mass vaccination sites have found themselves with extra doses at the end of the day. It’s difficult to parse, he said, whether people in those areas are not getting vaccinated due to personal hesitancy or problems accessing online appointments. Blake Farmer of Nashville Public Radio noted that many communities in the South lack effective local media and messaging, which leaves residents unsure of how to go about getting their shot in first place. Ellen Eldridge of Georgia Public Broadcasting said that access remains a major issue in her state, and that the process of scheduling appointments can pose prohibitive logistical hurdles for many residents.
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