Vaccine hesitancy may be to blame.
Running parallel to data revealing a sizable portion of the U.S. population is reluctant to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, roughly 30 percent of the Massachusetts State Police, represented by roughly 850 members, have not been vaccinated, despite being eligible to do so.
Initially reported in The Boston Globe, data from state police sources revealed that as of May 12, 2,002 of a total of 2,847 eligible police employees, which includes employees who work in a civilian fashion, have received at least one dose of a vaccine.
Some state officials have reportedly said that preexisting medical conditions have prevented some officers and first responders from feeling secure enough to get vaccinated.
However, vaccine hesitancy may also play a role.
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Another New England first responder force based in Rhode Island is refusing to get vaccinated.
Local outlets report that police officers, firefighters, and other frontline workers report that “hundreds” of officers statewide have declined to be vaccinated.
Specifically, just 238 of 414 of Providence police officers have been vaccinated at least once, amounting to 56 percent of the force overall.
Interestingly, both Massachusetts and Rhode Island are engaging in a steady vaccine rollout, boasting 26 percent and 27 percent of their populations being given at least one dose, respectively, per national data.
So the root of apparent vaccine hesitancy among police may come down to preferences.
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More than 800 people in the Massachusetts State Police refuse COVID-19 vaccine https://t.co/z95GsvCHO3 pic.twitter.com/JRKhArjkTD
— The Hill (@thehill) March 17, 2021
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