• Saad B Omer, Regina M Benjamin, Noel T Brewer, Alison M Buttenheim, Timothy Callaghan, Arthur Caplan, Richard M Carpiano, Chelsea Clinton, Renee DiResta, Jad A Elharake, Lisa C Flowers, Alison P Galvani, Rekha Lakshmanan, Yvonne A Maldonado, SarahAnn M McFadden, Michelle M Mello, Douglas J Opel, Dorit R Reiss, Daniel A Salmon, Jason L Schwartz, Joshua M Sharfstein, and Peter J Hotez.
• Yale Institute for Global Health, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA; Infectious Diseases Section, Department of Internal Medicine, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA; Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA; Yale School of Nursing, Yale University, Orange, CT, USA. Electronic address: saad.omer@yale.edu.
• Lancet. 2021 Dec 11; 398 (10317): 218621922186-2192.

AbstractSince the first case of COVID-19 was identified in the USA in January, 2020, over 46 million people in the country have tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Several COVID-19 vaccines have received emergency use authorisations from the US Food and Drug Administration, with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine receiving full approval on Aug 23, 2021. When paired with masking, physical distancing, and ventilation, COVID-19 vaccines are the best intervention to sustainably control the pandemic. However, surveys have consistently found that a sizeable minority of US residents do not plan to get a COVID-19 vaccine. The most severe consequence of an inadequate uptake of COVID-19 vaccines has been sustained community transmission (including of the delta [B.1.617.2] variant, a surge of which began in July, 2021). Exacerbating the direct impact of the virus, a low uptake of COVID-19 vaccines will prolong the social and economic repercussions of the pandemic on families and communities, especially low-income and minority ethnic groups, into 2022, or even longer. The scale and challenges of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign are unprecedented. Therefore, through a series of recommendations, we present a coordinated, evidence-based education, communication, and behavioural intervention strategy that is likely to improve the success of COVID-19 vaccine programmes across the USA.Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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