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EPA administrator visits Raleigh as part of vaccination push

Top White House officials are hoping to reinvigorate COVID-19 vaccination efforts in the Triangle.

Posted Updated

By
Matt Talhelm
, WRAL reporter
RALEIGH, N.C. — Top White House officials are hoping to reinvigorate COVID-19 vaccination efforts in the Triangle.

Volunteers from several community groups are going door to door in neighborhoods, including at the Pines of Ashton Apartments in east Raleigh, handing out fliers with facts about the vaccine and a schedule of when and where they can get a shot.

"I think it's very important for us to all be protected and for us to go back to normal [and] be a community again," said Lesley Nieves, with El Centro Hispano.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency administrator Michael Regan thanked those volunteers at a launch of their canvassing on Tuesday afternoon.

"It's down to the wire," said Regan. "Everyone's important, and people need to see people that look like them to trust the message, and the message is everyone should get vaccinated."

From there, those volunteers went out in groups to knock on doors and talk to people about getting the vaccine.

“It allows them to feel more comfortable knowing that we too have the vaccine, and we’re out there protecting others,” explained Nieves. “Having someone with the same kind of background allows them to feel more secure with it.”

The canvassing focuses on neighborhoods with low vaccination rates. There are stark differences in lower-income and minority communities in and around Raleigh, with only about 35% of people in South Park and east Raleigh vaccinated, compared to 98% in the North Hills area and 89% around Cary.

"That's what our real goal is - get everyone vaccinated so we can move forward and spend time with those they love without feeling they're exposing them," said Regan.

“For a lot of people, the reservations they have are well-founded, and it’s just a matter of giving them space and the opportunity to engage with people they trust,” added White House policy adviser for COVID-19 equality Cameron Webb.

The Biden administration's goal is to get 70% of people nationwide vaccinated by July 4.

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