With COVID-19, the American paradox has just found a new illustration in Arizona, as in other states of the country elsewhere, where the supply of vaccine now greatly exceeds demand. "For many reasons, many of those who are eligible for vaccination choose to wait or refuse the vaccine completely," says Joe Gerald, associate professor of public health policy and management at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. "Some, for fear of side effects or on principle. There is also a strong partisan bias among many of the reluctant. But to get out of it, we have to convince them to get vaccinated."

Kacey Ernst, a professor of epidemiology at the College of Public Health, acknowledges that breakthrough transmission risks outdoors are much lower than indoors, but “not all outdoor spaces are the same.” Ernst added, "Some are very sparsely populated — think hiking trails in remote areas. Others are much more crowded — outdoor festivals, concerts."

Health researchers are calling for more training and workflow improvement processes to ensure improved equity in the nation's system that manages organ transplants. "These are areas that need more study," said Dr. Khadijah Breathett, assistant professor with the College of Medicine – Tucson. "We need to initiate evidence-based bias reduction and anti-racism programs that lead to consistent change in the way that we do things. We have to figure out how to avoid subjective assessments, so we can start to make this process more equitable."

Second-year College of Medicine – Tucson student Gabrielle “Gabi” Mintz has been awarded the Shirley D. Curson Medical Student Scholarship from the UArizona Hillel Foundation.

Dr. Murtaza Akhter, an emergency physician at the College of Medicine – Phoenix, is interviewed about mask mandates and ways to stay safe amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Anecdotal reports of people with prolonged COVID-19 symptoms improving after getting the vaccine are encouraging, but scientists say more evidence is needed to prove any connection. What complicates the anecdotal reports that some long-haulers are getting better after the vaccine is the fact that some long-haulers' symptoms have been improving and even resolving over time, said Dr. Marilyn Glassberg, chief of the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at the College of Medicine – Phoenix.

A more relaxed definition of herd immunity is more achievable, one where enough natural infections and vaccinations prevent massive surges in COVID-19 cases, said Dr. Joe Gerald, an associate professor with the College of Public Health. By this measure, herd immunity is possible, he said. “I think there are enough people who are either naturally immune or vaccine immune that we’re just not gonna see the same size and scale of outbreaks.”

Students at the University of Arizona are taking part in a nationwide study involving more than 20 college campuses that aims to understand whether people vaccinated against COVID-19 can still transmit the disease as asymptomatic carriers. The study’s principal investigator, Dr. Elizabeth Connick, chief of infectious diseases at the College of Medicine – Tucson, explains how the study is being conducted and how the findings can serve the ultimate goal of ending the pandemic.

The Governor’s Arts Awards recently recognized a program that aims to bring creativity to medical students. The Art in Medicine program at the College of Medicine – Phoenix has been going on since 2014, and is the brainchild of Cindi Standley, a professor of physiology and the program’s director.

The state has opened what is expected to be the last large state-run vaccination site at Gila River Arena in Glendale. Dr. Elizabeth Connick, chief of infectious diseases at the College of Medicine – Tucson, believes herd immunity will be reached in time. "I think as more and more people see their friends and their family are going fine and they got the vaccine, they will be more willing to accept it," Connick said.