A drone catapulted airborne from government refrigeration centers gently drops a parachuted container with 2,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine into a remote village in Ghana, where two nurses wait anxiously to retrieve the precious vaccine and inoculate their wholly unvaccinated village. Ghana and many other low-income countries have less than a 10 percent vaccination rate. That endangers us all.

Experts like Bill Gates, Dr. Seth Berkley and the World Health Organization complain that low-income countries have not received even their promised amount of vaccine from more-developed countries, and say that between now and early 2022, there still will be supply constraints.

It’s essential that all Americans get their vaccinations and booster shots to protect themselves and everyone else. If you have not done so yet, please, please get fully vaccinated and boosted.

I am 67, have a slight immune comorbidity, am fully vaccinated and know how lucky I am to live in America that not only created and has these lifesavers, but also offers them for free, professionally and conveniently.

We are all in this together — if we like it or not. I am blessed to be able to isolate myself, mask myself and stay safe. Whether it’s my experience with contact tracing, extensive world travel, tendency to be quixotic or understanding that deadly variants like Delta and now Omicron originate in under-vaccinated countries, I plan to delay my booster until early next year.

David Atman 

Eugene

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