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When the Covid-19 pandemic became a full-fledged crisis in March, public health experts gave a prescription for riding it out: Flatten the curve with social distancing, lockdowns, contact tracing, etc., and then wait for a vaccine. The hope was, and still is, that a mass vaccination campaign can restore the world to normal.
For many reasons, the success of a vaccination campaign is not guaranteed. The vaccine has to be effective, and there needs to be enough of it to put a dent in transmission. Another challenge perhaps overlooked: “What if we get a safe and effective vaccine, and people choose not to get it?” says Matt Motta, a political scientist at Oklahoma State University.