COLUMBUS, Ohio — The race to vaccinate Ohioans continues, and in Columbus, the race to vaccinate the minority population is an uphill one.

What You Need To Know

  • Health officials are trying to get the COVID-19 vaccine to minority groups

  • There are 60,000 members of the Somali community in Columbus

  • Health officials are doing things like having registration in their native language

“I tried to get my appointment earlier but it was so frustrating,” said Ahmed Kamil.

Kamil has lived in Columbus for more than 20 years. He is a member of the Somali comm​unity, with around 60,000 living in Columbus. That’s why Columbus Public Health is pairing with the Somali Community Association of Ohio to make vaccines more accessible.

“This is very important to get, a chance for the community or minority it’s also very encouraging to see people getting it,” said Kamil.

Public Health Manager Hibo Noor said around 200 vaccines were administered at each clinic on Tuesday and Thursday.

“At the beginning, there was a little bit of a hesitance, but now the community realizes the benefit of the vaccine,” said Noor.

Aside from building confidence, she said language barriers and transportation can be a challenge.

“This location and other location is so close to the community, so we’ve removed the barriers that people need transportation,” said Noor. “Also, the other big help was the registration because the people registering are Somali.”

It’s allowing community members like Kamil to protect them self against COVID-19.

“I took it and I feel good today,” said Kamil. “And I feel safe.”