Whereas most vaccines take ten or more years to develop at a minimum – a necessary precaution to screen for adverse reactions in human test subjects who receive them — the COVID-19 vaccines currently in development across the globe will likely make it to market in less than a year from the starting line.

The monkey wrench in the pharmaceutical machinery, though, may prove to be widespread (and rightful) skepticism on the part of the public regarding the safety and/or efficacy of the eventual vaccine.

That people will be harmed by the COVID-19 vaccine once it is introduced to the public is inevitable. All vaccines, which re-jigger the immune system to produce antibodies against the targeted pathogen, can cause adverse reactions in a small percentage of the populations that receive them — even the safest, most thoroughly vetted ones.

This scientific, physiological reality is not disputed even by vaccine advocates. In fact, in the last 30 years, the U.S. government (using taxpayer money) has compensated victims of adverse reactions to vaccines to the tune of $4.4 billion. The COVID-19 vaccine will be no exception in terms of the damage it will inflict – in fact, because of the rushed nature of the vetting process and the proposed population-wide vaccination regimen, it will likely be far more destructive than previous vaccines in terms of scale.

Despite the serious health risks assumed by taking a vaccine pushed so rapidly through the vetting process, some Americans will undoubtedly roll up their sleeves. Others, though, will not; in fact, the number of Americans who hesitate to commit to taking the vaccine has been steadily rising since the novel coronavirus outbreak began.