“I would still rather be sick than get a shot,” Covid-19 hospitalized man tells reporters while getting supplemental oxygen

Despite health officials’ efforts convincing people to get vaccinated, there are plenty of vaccine hesitant folks around refusing to get the shot and it seems that it will be a hard task for country leaders to change their mind.

The fact that Covid-19 numbers are surging in the last couple of weeks and hospitals are filling up again in almost every state, appears to be totally unimportant for some people as they heavily rely on misinformation causing vaccination rates to stall.

The latest vaccine hesitancy story is coming from Louisiana where a man who contracted COVID-19 and wound up hospitalized said he would rather be ill than get vaccinated against the coronavirus.

“Here I am recovering, getting out of here finally tomorrow. Am I going to get a vaccine? No,” Scott R. told CBS News as he lay in a bed getting supplemental oxygen.

A father and a small-business owner, Scott got infected with Covid-19 that led to developing pneumonia forcing him to get hospitalized. But even though the vaccine could have prevented him getting infected or at least developing pneumonia, he said he still would not have gotten vaccinated.

“I would have gone through this, yes sir,” Scott, who said he’s a Republican, told CBS News. “Don’t shove it down my throat. That’s what local, state, federal administration is trying to do — shove it down your throat.”

US has made the vaccines available to everyone, free of charge. The vaccination rates have stalled recently after many people are vaccine hesitant and don’t trust the vaccination process. Each of the vaccines approved for emergency use in the US is effective in preventing COVID-19 — especially severe illness and death — and reduces the risk of people spreading the virus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The more contagious Delta variant is the number one reason for the latest coronavirus spread and the numbers have rapidly increased in all states, especially in those with the lowest vaccination rates like Arkansas which is another proof that vaccines work.

According to the latest data, more than 97% of hospitalized people were unvaccinated people.

“There is a message that is crystal clear: This is becoming a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” Rochelle Walensky, the CDC director said.

In the last couple of days, Fox hosts and several Republicans urged the people to get vaccinated in an effort to improve the vaccination rates.