It turns out that the distance between Covid vaccines in a vial and a person's arm can be longer than we thought. This collaboration between the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics and Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County is an effort to close that distance through a grant from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.
Through this project, Catholic Charities is expanding its already significant efforts to provide vaccinations in marginalized communities around the near and far reaches of Santa Clara County, and to support their effort, Catholic Charities, the California Catholic Conference, and the Ethics Center created the following media materials to support practitioners, nonprofit organizations, parish staff, social action directors, and school personnel as they encourage vaccination and address misinformation within their communities.
The key materials for distribution (PSA videos and a Get Vaccinated flyer are provided below in multiple languages (English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Mandarin). The message we send throughout this collaboration is "Love your neighbor and get vaccinated." In doing so, you protect yourself, your family and friends, and your community.
Read the press release announcing the campaign.
These brief public service videos are available for distribution via web and social media in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Mandarin.
The PSA video files for television/media/organizational distribution are available upon request. To request .mp4 files for download contact ethics@scu.edu.
Information about the COVID-19 vaccine to assist social action directors, school personnel, nonprofit, arch/diocesan, and parish staff with answering questions and correcting misinformation.
Charles E. Binkley, MD, director of bioethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics and Fr. Kyle Shinseki, S.J., Campus Minister discuss COVID-19 vaccination information to assist practitioners with the delivery of appropriate vaccination messaging to the communities they serve.
Download this information in PDF format: PDF Version of COVID-19 Vaccine FAQ
Are COVID-19 vaccines effective?
Yes, they are. All vaccines approved in the USA are >85% effective at preventing severe COVID infections and 100% effective at preventing death from COVID.
Are COVID-19 vaccines safe?
Yes. Millions of people have been vaccinated and there is no consistent pattern of serious or unexpected adverse events. Some people may be concerned that the vaccines were developed too quickly. However, no corners were cut and they were all rigorously tested on tens of thousands of health volunteers of different ages, genders, races, and ethnicities.
Severe allergic reactions occur in 2-5 cases per million people vaccinated. That is compared to the risk of a severe allergic reaction to the commonly prescribed medication penicillin which is 1 per 10,000.
Are there side effects after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine?
Expected side effects are mild and include pain at the injection site, fatigue, headache, and fever. Any symptom that is severe or that persists should be evaluated by a health care provider.
Who all can get the COVID-19 vaccine?
Currently in California everyone 12 years of age and older is eligible for the vaccine. You can get the vaccine whether or not you have health insurance and there is no cost to receive the vaccine. It doesn’t matter if you have documents or not, or if you are a resident or not.
Why should I get the COVID-19 vaccine?
The vaccine will protect you, your family, and your community from getting severely ill and dying from COVID, especially the most vulnerable people.
Pope Francis took the vaccine and he believes that getting vaccinated is an act of charity and a way of showing love for your neighbor.
Also, after you get vaccinated you can safely return to doing many of the things you enjoyed doing before the pandemic started without worrying about getting sick and dying from COVID or infecting someone else that you love, particularly your elderly friends and family. Also, many places are now requiring proof of vaccination such as schools and sporting events.
Is it morally acceptable for Roman Catholics to get the COVID-19 vaccine?
Yes. All the COVID-19 vaccines being used in the US are morally permissible and can be used in good conscience according to the Vatican, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the California Catholic Conference.
Visit cacatholic.org/coronavirus for complete information, including links to the moral and ethical analysis.
Where do I sign up for the vaccine?
You can contact your local health department or you can go to myturn.ca.gov.
FAQs, position statements, and previously recorded webinars designed for practitioners and resource providers to assist with community-based vaccination education initiatives.
Panel discussion and key statements on the responsibility to vaccinate in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Produced by the Ethics Center and the California Catholic Conference, these materials share guidance from the Catholic Bishops of California urging all Californians to receive a vaccination to prevent the continued spread of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic that has claimed the lives of more than two million people worldwide including a brief summary of key Catholic statements on both the ethics of vaccination and basic facts about vaccination.
The flyer is available as a PDF download in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese.
Watch panel discussion and webinar recordings from the Ethics Center's 2021 Get Vaccinated Webinar Series. These important conversations cover a range of important statements on the responsibility to vaccinate in the COVID-19 pandemic and are designed to assist community supporters, social workers, educators, arch/diocesan and parish staff to understand the moral, ethical, and medical aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic and to offer answers to common concerns and questions about vaccination.
English language recording of "LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AND GET VACCINATED: Science, Ethics, and COVID-19 Vaccines" Webinar recorded on March 26, 2021
Recording with Spanish audio interpretation of "LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AND GET VACCINATED: Science, Ethics, and COVID-19 Vaccines" Webinar recorded on March 26, 2021
While vaccines provide protection for individuals and communities against severe disease and death, this fight is far from over as we see infection rates climb, especially among children who cannot be vaccinated. Ethics Center staff and scholars analyze the critical questions in this Ethics Spotlight.
A collection of articles addressing key ethical dilemmas on the topic of COVID-19 vaccination. Ethics Center staff, scholars, and students analyze these critical issues in this Ethics Spotlight.
