Murphy Urges Public to Take COVID-19 Vaccine

Greenville, N.C. – Congressman Greg Murphy, M.D. (NC-03) released the below video urging Americans to take the COVID-19 vaccine:

A transcript of the video can be found below:

Hello, I'm Congressman Greg Murphy. It's now been close to a year when the world and our country closed down because of the COVID pandemic. There's been a lot of talk about this issue from members in politics like myself. But today I'd like to come today to talk to you, not as a member of Congress, but as a physician of more than 30 years.

The pandemic has taken its toll on everyone in society. We have lost over half a million lives. As a result of the pandemic, there've been rampant stay at home orders. We've had to wear masks. Our kids have been kept out of school. Businesses have shuttered, some never to reopen again. Not to mention all the mental health issues, the pandemic, and the response to the pandemic has caused.

We have had our freedoms taken away. The good news is there is light at the end of the tunnel. We now have a plan to get our freedom back and begin living life as we did before. President Trump's Operation Warp Speed began last May and brought a safe and effective vaccine. They did this not by cutting corners, but by cutting unnecessary regulation. These vaccines are up to 95% effective, which essentially is unheard of in the medical world.

The United States is currently administering over two and a half million vaccinations a day. Essential workers have been for the most part vaccinated and soon we will have plentiful supplies of vaccine. Over 90% of the doctors in the U S. have or will have taken the vaccine.

I know there is some hesitancy to take the vaccine by some and I'd like to address that. We do know that the majority of those who get severely ill and even die from COVID-19 are those over 60, yet I will tell you personally, I have known several patients of mine who are younger, who have died from this very infectious disease.

Death isn't the only end point of the infection. Just because a patient may survive the infection does not mean they may not suffer long-term consequences. We find that many people now have significant and lingering effects from being infected with the COVID virus. They're usually breathing problems, but they can be heart problems, kidney problems, and other system disorders.

I do understand there is some reluctance on younger, healthier individuals, especially men, to take the vaccine. Many think that if they do get COVID, they will only get ill or they won't even die. And yet there may be some truth to that.

But let me ask those individuals to think about something else. We all like to talk about freedom and personal responsibility. Those are very important concepts, which are being actually attacked in today's political environment. Anyone can get COVID at any time.

And this is why it's so important in my opinion, to take this vaccine. Because even if you contract COVID, it may not even get you really ill. You can give it to someone else who is high risk. This virus is very infectious. I'm 58 and in good health. I have taken the vaccine. I have urged my family to take the vaccine.

America's leading doctors and scientists vouch for the safety of vaccine. And as I've said, 90% of American physicians have either taken or will take the vaccine when they get the opportunity. The national effects of this pandemic have been far reaching, not just on people, but on their livelihoods as well. I can assure you that getting COVID-19 can be much, much worse than the effects of the vaccine.

We must continue to take the pandemic seriously to reopen our society and get our freedoms back. Schools must reopen. Now businesses must be able to function at full capacity. We must be able to get back to that sense of normalcy that we all had before the pandemic. Vaccine has hesitancy is understandable, but getting vaccinated is the quickest way for us as a society to get our freedoms back. Presidents Trump, Obama, Biden, and Bush have all urged everyone to get vaccinated.

Let me be very clear. I do not support a vaccine mandate. Part of what makes America unique is our freedom and our ability to choose what we put into our bodies. But I would ask you to thoughtfully consider taking these vaccines.

We all want to get our freedoms again. We all want to return to life as we knew it before. I'm Dr. Greg Murphy, physician and member of the United States Congress. I have taken the vaccine and I hope you will also.