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Willingness to vaccinate against COVID-19 in the US: Representative longitudinal evidence from April–October 2020

General Information

Title
Willingness to vaccinate against COVID-19 in the US: Representative longitudinal evidence from April–October 2020
Author
Michael Daly and Eric Robinson
Publication Type
Journal paper
Outlet
American Journal of Preventive Medicine
Year
2021
Abstract
Introduction: Vaccines against COVID-19 have been developed in unprecedented time. However, the effectiveness of any vaccine is dictated by the proportion of the population willing to be vaccinated. In this observational population-based study we examined intentions to be vaccinated against COVID-19 throughout the pandemic. Methods: In November, 2020 we analyzed longitudinal data from a nationally representative sample of 7,547 US adults enrolled in the Understanding America Study (UAS) using multinomial logistic regresion. Participants reporting being willing, undecided and unwilling to get vaccinated against coronavirus across 13 assessments conducted from April-October, 2020. Public attitudes to vaccination against the coronavirus were also assessed on a four-point Likert scale.

Results: Willingness to vaccinate declined from 71% in April to 53.6% in October. This was explained by an increase in the percentage of participants undecided about vaccinating (from 10.5% to 14.4%) and the portion of the sample unwilling to vaccinate (from 18.5% to 32%). The population subgroups most likely to be undecided/unwilling to vaccinate were those without a degree (undecided: RRR=2.47, 95% CI: 2.04-3.00; unwilling: RRR=1.92, 95% CI:1.67-2.20), Black participants (undecided: RRR=2.18, 95% CI: 1.73-2.74; unwilling: RRR=1.98, 95% CI:1.63-2.42), and females (undecided: RRR=1.41, 95% CI:1.20-1.65; unwilling: RRR=1.29, 95% CI:1.14-1.46). Participants who were older or were on higher incomes were least likely to be undecided or unwilling to vaccinate. Concerns about potential side effects of a vaccine were common.

Conclusions: Intentions to be vaccinated against coronavirus have declined rapidly during the pandemic and close to half of Americans are undecided or unwilling to be vaccinated.