Plymouth COVID-19 Survivor Urges Unvaccinated to Get Shots

A Plymouth man who spent two months in the hospital battling COVID-19 last year is making a plea for people to get vaccinated.

“Put aside your political affiliations and get vaccinated if you love your family and love your community,” said Reggie McAllister of Plymouth. “Just be responsible.”

McAllister contracted COVID-19 last April. He said his kidneys failed and he came close to dying due to a heart condition.

Reggie McAllister spent two months in the hospital with COVID-19 in 2020.

Wednesday morning, he joined medical professionals from Hennepin Healthcare to encourage others, especially people of color, to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

The plea comes as Hennepin Healthcare has seen a steady rise in COVID-19 among unvaccinated patients.

“What we know today is that our hospital is full of people in the ICU who are unvaccinated,” said Dr. Nneka Sederstrom, Hennepin Healthcare’s chief equity officer. “Young people of color, and they’re dying from COVID. That’s what we know today.”

Reasons brought up for not getting vaccinated include fears over the potential short and long-term side effects of the vaccine. Others, meanwhile have an overall distrust of the American health care system. The medical professionals tried to dispel those concerns during the Wednesday news conference.

According to the Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium (MNEHRC), a collaboration of Minnesota Health Systems working to study COVID-19 vaccination rates, the overall vaccinate rate for people 12 and over is:

• Native American: 48.8%
• Black/African-American: 49.8%
• Hispanic: 56.1%
• White: 63.0%
• Asian/Pacific Islander: 73.3%

Meanwhile, a COVID-19 vaccine incentive program is happening right now at the State Fair. Anyone who receives their first shot will get a $100 Visa gift card.

Hennepin County is also offering a $50 Visa gift card for each shot administered at any Hennepin County vaccine event while supplies last.

Plymouth