(WXYZ) — A new COVID-19 vaccine clinic in Detroit is giving people even more incentives to join the fight against COVID-19.
The clinic is being hosted by the Detroit Association of Black Organizations. It's happening at Wayne County Community College District's Downtown campus on Fort St., just east of Detroit's Financial District.
Detroit is still at the bottom of the list when it comes to vaccination rates, with less than 50% of residents vaccinated against COVID-19.
The clinic is not only giving people a financial incentive, but they want to ease any lingering fears surrounding the shot.
"You know a lie can live forever. There has been a lot of misinformation about this," Rev. Horace Sheffield said.
The Black community's vaccine hesitancy dates back years, according to Sheffield. It's rooted in a long history of dangerous medical experimentation, and many still carry that with them today.
"People in my community have associated it with medical apartheid and other kinds of things that we know of happened and were wrong," Sheffield said. "You know people have described all kinds of erroneous stuff to the development of vaccination."
Sheffield says the Detroit Association of Black Organizations 100% endorses the vaccine. Their goal is not to pressure, but to educate those who are still on the fence.
"If they still are a little reluctant, we have people who will spend time with them personally kind of walking them through some of their reluctance and hesitancy," Sheffield said.
"COVID-19 is not going anywhere it's not too late to get vaccinated. Vaccines are still free they are incredibly safe and effective," MDHHS Chief Medical Executive Dr. Natasha Bagdasaran said.
The state health department says cases will likely spike in May, but luckily, hospitalizations aren't expected to follow.
Sheffield says if you're holding out, give the experts a chance to change your mind. You'll also get a $50 gift card in exchange.
The clinics will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesday, April 26 and Tuesday, May 3. If you're a senior and need transportation, they will arrange a ride for you.
Additional Coronavirus information and resources:
View a global coronavirus tracker with data from Johns Hopkins University.
See complete coverage on our Coronavirus Continuing Coverage page.
