Several new polls show that vaccine hesitancy is split along political party lines.

An NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll found that Republicans are less likely to choose to get the vaccine if it's available, compared to Democrats and independents.

According to the poll, an increasing number of Black people - who had been identified as some of the most reluctant to get the shot - are now saying they will.

"Since the beginning, I have seen less hesitancy," says Rev. Dr. Sedgewick Easley, the head of Union Baptist Church in Hempstead.

He’s been working with federal and local leaders to combat vaccine hesitancy.

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"We, as leaders, have been trying very much so to teach our communities that this vaccine is safe, that this is not Tuskegee and you can trust it,” he says.

However, Eamon J. Phelan, of Hauppauge, says the vaccine was rushed and can understand way people are hesitant.

"You can't really blame them…Normally a vaccine takes 10 years, any drug takes 10 years to get FDA approval and this one was done in six months," he says.

The poll was done in early March. Since then, many more people have become eligible for the vaccine. Beginning on Tuesday in New York, any over the age of 16 can begin making vaccine appointments.

Health officials say at least 70% of the public has to be vaccinated to reach herd immunity. Researchers say they polled more than 1,200 adults. They reached out to them at home and on their cellphones, in English and Spanish.

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