PENNSYLVANIA — Even as thousands of Pennsylvanians embrace science each day by receiving COVID-19 vaccinations, Pennsylvania Republicans continue to put themselves further into the minority and make clear they are the pro-pandemic, anti-vaccine party.
As exit polls in last week’s failed Republican recall in California made clear, defeating the COVID-19 pandemic remains voters’ number one concern. That hasn’t stopped Republicans from across PA from perilously staking their political futures on opposition to President Biden’s overwhelmingly popular plan to defeat the virus. Instead of acting to protect people in Pennsylvania and encourage vaccination, PA Republicans are embracing anti-vaxxers, actively fueling a deadly pandemic and harming us, their constituents.
Not only have PA Republicans done little to quell vaccine skeptics, but the ones speaking up are actively spreading misinformation. State Rep. Russ Diamond (R., Lebanon) falsely called the vaccine poison on social media and vowed not to get one. Meanwhile, State Rep. Dawn Keefer (R., York) introduced legislation that would ban businesses or sports venues from requiring proof of vaccination.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, doctors say this Republican rhetoric can have deadly consequences. Dr. Meaghan Reid, an emergency physician in the Philadelphia area, even pleading with local GOP members: “We urge Republican leaders across Pennsylvania to reach out to their supporters and let them know that they have the choice to get vaccinated as a way to protect themselves and their loved ones. We cannot afford to turn our backs on the one resource that can help us eradicate COVID-19.”
“Public health policy should be driven by theory and evidence, not partisan politics,” said Rosie Lapowsky, PA Dems Spokesperson. “Pennsylvania Republicans acting out of partisanship have cost not only jobs but lives. Their actions are dangerous. It is time Republicans take this pandemic seriously and decide if they want to stand with President Biden and the rest of America, or in support of the spread of a deadly disease.”
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