FRANKLIN COUNTY, Mo. — As the leader of St. John's Lutheran Church in rural Franklin County, Pastor Marty Singer is a man of faith — in God, and the COVID-19 vaccines.
“I see the Lord's hand in this, I really do,” he said. “If people ask me, ‘pastor what would you do?’, believe me, if I could roll my sleeve up right now, I’d take it.”
He’s in an age group qualified to get a COVID-19 vaccine under Missouri’s rollout plan, but he says he’s had no luck getting through local pre-registration websites, and people he’s spoken to on the phone tell him he may not get the shot until spring.
“I would like to be seen as the example, first of all to say 'you get that shot, you get that vaccine,' and I'm comfortable enough that I'd take it. But I've had no luck so far.”
Dr. Thomas Jackson is medical director of Missouri Baptist Sullivan Hospital — where he says it’s just as important to get people vaccinated as it is in bigger area cities, with COVID-19 knowing no geographical boundaries.
“I have patients that have told me that ‘I don't go out very often,’ but I've had people get they go to Walmart once or one restaurant and then they get COVID,” he said.
A recent Kaiser Family Foundation study finds 35% of rural Americans say they either will not or probably will not get a COVID vaccine.
Nearly 40% of Missourians live in rural areas. Dr. Jackson says if they aren’t getting vaccinated, it will be for a combination of reasons.
“I think there's a lot of misinformation on the internet and people talking to each other about it,” he said. “If you actually look at the science, these vaccines are very, very safe.”
Some people aren't getting online -- which presents a different problem. Jackson says spotty internet access in many rural communities can make it difficult for people to track down a vaccine.
“The other thing is the groups right now are people that are older, and older people tend to have a little bit more issues with using the internet at this point,” he said.
This week Governor Mike Parson went on defense against criticism that the state is actually showing favoritism toward rural communities with its vaccine rollout by hosting more clinics in small or agricultural towns.
Dr. Jackson likewise pushes back against the idea that the state is over-prioritizing areas like his.
“No, I don't think so, because my thing is, how are you going to vaccinate those people? Because the issue out here is we don't have high-speed Internet. So there's a lot of people that are can't register online,” he said. “These mass vaccination campaigns, that's probably going to be one of the best delivery methods out in the rural community.”
“We just need to use the vaccines and use it in a way that we get the most people vaccinated,” he added.
Pastor Singer says he'll keep praying for the process to work, trusting in the vaccinators—and God.
“I think He's going to bring us through it, and I think maybe another lesson that He's teaching us is patience.”
People in Sullivan and surrounding communities are encouraged to pre-register for the vaccine through the following sites:
- BJC HealthCare (includes Missouri Baptist Sullivan Hospital) – register at www.bjc.org/vaccine. Those without internet or e-mail access can call 314-273-1252.
- Franklin County Health Department – https://www.franklinmo.org/health
- Crawford County Health Department – call 573-775-2555 press 0 to be connected with an employee.