Contributing factors for low COVID-19 vaccination rates in vulnerable populations

As we celebrate the one-year milestone of the COVID-19 crisis, a gift to all of us has been developing and implementing the COVID-19 vaccine from manufacturers Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson and Johnson. While a segment of Americans throughout the country are scheduling appointments and rolling up their sleeves, vaccine hesitancy prevents a portion of the population from receiving their vaccines.

The American Journal of Preventive medicine defines vaccines hesitancy as concerns about the decision to vaccinate oneself or one's children due to a broad range of contributing factors such as their compulsory nature, their coincidental temporal relationship to adverse health outcomes, and a lack of trust in the corporation and public health (Daniel Salmon, 2015). Vaccine hesitancy was a concern for public health experts even before the COVID-19 pandemic, as it primarily impacted the influenza vaccination rates in elderly and minority populations. A report from the AARP Public Policy Institute shared that nearly half of adults aged 50 and older are vaccine-hesitant. Another 11 percent of this population never get vaccines, and that the relationship with previous vaccination behaviors is an indicator of what people can expect with the COVID-19 pandemic. The CDC's 2019 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System showed that 53 percent of adults ages 50 and older received a flu shot in the previous year. Still, there were notable differences in the population. For example, Black (47 percent) and Hispanic (43 percent) older adults receive flu vaccines at rates below their White (55 percent) counterparts (McSpadden, 2021).