KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City, Missouri, City Council voted 10-1 to extend the indoor mask mandate until Nov. 4th.
Mayor Quinton Lucas told reporters Wednesday that increasing vaccinations is the best way to prevent future extension orders.
“If we get folks vaccinated this is perhaps something we don’t need to deal with for another order extension,” Lucas said.
According to the Kansas City Health Department, over 46% of residents are fully vaccinated and over 53% of residents have received at least one shot.
“All of our populations still have a long way to go,” interim Health Director Frank Thompson said.
During a council committee meeting on Wednesday, Thompson showed a racial breakdown of vaccinations that shows African Americans lacking behind Whites and Hispanics.
Thompson said misinformation and lack of access play a factor among some unvaccinated people.
“It’s really not an issue of is the information out there, the information is out there," Thompson said. "It’s what is it going to take for individuals to make that decision?”
The Samuel Rodgers Health Center is one organization working to convince people to roll up their sleeves and get the COVID 19 vaccine.
“Most people are willing to at least listen and a lot of folks they’re open to it, but there’s what see more is we’ve seen more fear,” Samuel Rodgers Health Center community advocate Rory Kirk said.
Kirk said fear is replaced with understanding when people are confronted with good information. He said the process has convinced some people to get vaccinated.
Mayor Lucas said, going forward, it may be time to get prominent people to promote the safety of vaccines to convince others to get vaccinated.
