新冠肺炎让美国经历了有史以来最严重的伤痛，而在不断增加的感染和死亡病例面前，疫苗被认为是美国走出这场噩梦的唯一途径。然而，民调显示，超过半数的美国人目前并不愿意接种新冠疫苗，而这些拒绝新冠疫苗的美国人给出的理由也并非毫无依据。
一份12月的民调显示，只有一半的美国人表示他们准备好了接种新冠疫苗，27%的人表示不确定，26%的人则毫不犹豫地拒绝了。
As the largest vaccination drive in U.S. history was kicked off on Monday, only half of the American people claim they are ready to roll up their sleeves, with 27 percent saying they are not sure and 26 percent refusing the coronavirus vaccine without hesitation, according to AP-NORC poll updated in December.为了获得群体免疫，至少70%的美国人需要接种疫苗，因此现在的问题是：根据民调，37%不愿接种疫苗的美国人表示，新冠疫苗的研制“时间仓促”是主要原因，另外36%的人希望等等看疫苗的安全性和有效性究竟如何。有些人还指出，新冠疫苗的政治化可能会降低疫苗的质量。In a Gallup poll, 37 percent of Americans who would not be vaccinated say "the rushed timeline" for the coronavirus vaccine development process is the main reason they refuse the vaccine, while another 36 percent indicate they want to wait and see whether the coronavirus vaccine is safe or effective enough after the first round of vaccination. Among the other 15 percent, some of them specifically point out that the politicization of the vaccine could potentially compromise its safety.一款疫苗的研发过程通常需要十年，或更长时间，但是美国第一批疫苗的制造商辉瑞公司，将这个时间缩短到了一年之内。据《华尔街日报》报道，为了加速研发过程，辉瑞公司采取了一种激进的策略。辉瑞公司生产的疫苗使用了mRNA技术，然而，在此之前，这项技术“从未被批准过”。为了让疫苗尽快上市，辉瑞公司提交的试验申请文件也“充满了需要填补的数据空白”。而在疫苗第二阶段试验完成之前，辉瑞就开始了第三阶段的试验。当疫苗还在猴子身上进行试验时，辉瑞公司同时就开始了在人类志愿者身上进行试验。此外，由于时间紧迫，这款疫苗并没有收集特殊群体接种数据，包括艾滋病毒感染者、免疫抑制患者和癌症患者，并且也尚未开始研究该疫苗对于孕妇和幼童的影响。According to the Wall Street Journal, to speed up the development, Pfizer adopted a radical strategy.The mRNA technology used by Pfizer vaccines "had never been approved before." And to get the vaccine out as quickly as possible, a paperwork Pfizer submitted to get an approval of testing was "littered with holes for data" that should be filled in.Pfizer also started the third stage before the second stage was finished. And normally, three testing trials should be carried out one by one. However, when it still tested the vaccines in monkeys, Pfizer had simultaneously tested vaccines with human candidates.Plus, with limited time, the testing stage had not gathered any data from special groups, including people with HIV, immunosuppressed conditions and cancers. And studies of the Pfizer vaccines' impact on pregnant women and young kids have not started yet.新冠疫苗可能带来严重副作用，这是许多美国人犹豫不决的主要原因。辉瑞公司报告了疫苗组在试验阶段出现的四例贝尔氏麻痹病例。疫苗上市后，人们对其副作用的担忧加剧。出于医学伦理考虑，新冠疫苗的试验样本排除了有严重过敏反应的人。然而，在英国开始疫苗接种的第一天，两名医疗工作者在注射了辉瑞公司的新冠疫苗后，就出现了严重的过敏反应。美国一名医护人员同样在注射辉瑞疫苗后的十分钟内就出现严重过敏反应。The concerns over side effects grew faster when Pfizer vaccines went public. Due to ethical concerns, trial samples ruled out people with severe allergic reactions. However, two health workers showed severe allergic reactions to the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine after the first day of the UK vaccination campaign on December 8. Health officials in the U.S. also reported on December 16 that a healthcare worker had a severe allergic reaction to Pfizer vaccine within 10 minutes of receiving a shot.英国官员随后强调，对疫苗、药物或食物有严重过敏史的人不应接种辉瑞疫苗。但美国食品药品监督管理局则表示，对于大多数有过敏史的美国人，接种辉瑞疫苗应该是安全的，“除非他们对疫苗或其中一种成分有严重的过敏反应”。要结束新冠危机，必须实现群体免疫。那么，在如此多美国人抗拒新冠疫苗的情况下，政府或是企业是否会强制人们接种呢？理论上讲，这是可能的。美国宪法学者艾伦·德肖维茨接受采访时表示，“如果疫苗是安全、有效和必要的”，那么政府可以强制民众接种新冠疫苗。一些商业领袖也同意这一观点。美国制造商协会首席执行官杰伊·蒂蒙斯说，由于许多行业对社会至关重要，“如果这意味着我们必须强制接种疫苗，那么我们就会强制接种疫苗”。Legally, it is possible. In an interview with Larry King, constitutional scholar Alan Dershowitz claimed that "if the vaccine is safe and effective and necessary," the government can mandate the coronavirus vaccination.And some industry leaders agree with that. Jay Timmons, the president and CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers, said since many industries are crucial to the society, "if that means we have to require vaccines, then we will require vaccines."但实际上，包括脸书在内的许多公司都告诉员工，可能并没有必要强制接种新冠疫苗。即使政府和企业强制人们接种新冠疫苗，一些有健康问题或宗教信仰的人也很可能会被豁免。许多公众人物都对美国人说要“遵循科学”，但是公众对新冠疫苗的犹豫不应被简单定义为毫无意义的阴谋论，这些担忧中，有许多是实实在在的。此刻，科学家和政治家们应该通过更严格的科学研究或是更真诚的公共对话，回应人们的合理担忧。Many public figures told American people to "follow the science." But in the development of the Pfizer vaccine, normal procedures have been adjusted and compromised to catch the date. Public hesitancy over vaccine should not be simply defined as nonsense conspiracy theories, as many of these concerns are sincere.It is time for scientists and politicians to step up and use every means at their disposal to address people's legitimate concerns through more rigorous research and more genuine public conversations.毕竟，半数的美国人并非毫无理智；他们只是想要更少的不确定，和更多的安全。疫苗获批背后：发达国家疯狂“囤货”，贫穷国家还要等多久？