Inside STAT: With science and scripture, a Baltimore pastor is fighting Covid-19 vaccine skepticism

TERRIS KING, PASTOR OF LIBERTY GRACE CHURCH OF GOD IN BALTIMORE. (ERIC KRUSZEWSKI FOR STAT)

Liberty Grace Church of God's pastor, 60-year-old Terris King, has been facing an uphill battle since the Covid-19 pandemic hit, especially since the church he leads is in Baltimore's hardest-hit area. His decision to keep services virtual is unpopular. But King, who spent 30 years in government health care including as the founding director of CMS' Office of Minority Health, knows prioritizing science is important. This background has inspired him to speak to his congregants about vaccine skepticism, which is high among Black Americans, given medicine's historic mistreatment of the group. King plans to talk to his congregants weekly about Covid-19 vaccine developments and the importance of a flu shot. “I think that the nexus … of religion and health care is one that has not been examined, utilized, and exhausted in the African American community,” King tells STAT's Amy Sokolow. Read more here.