• Paula M Frew, Allison Kennedy Fisher, Michelle M Basket, Yunmi Chung, Jay Schamel, Judith L Weiner, Jennifer Mullen, Saad B Omer, and Walter A Orenstein.
• Emory University, School of Medicine, 1760 Haygood Road, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States; Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health, 1518 Clifton Rd, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States; U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, 1600 Clifton Rd. Atlanta, GA 30333, United States. Electronic address: pfrew@emory.edu.
• Vaccine. 2016 Nov 4; 34 (46): 5689-5696.

ObjectiveUnderstanding the current status of parents' vaccine decision making is crucial to inform public policy. We sought to assess changes in vaccine decisions among parents of young children.MethodsWe conducted a web-based national poll of parents of children <7years in 2012 and 2014. Participants reported vaccine decisions for their youngest child. We calculated survey-weighted population estimates of overall immunizations decisions, and delay/refusal rates for specific vaccines.ResultsIn 2012, 89.2% (95% CI, 87.3-90.8%) reported accepting or planning to accept all recommended non-influenza childhood vaccines, 5.5% (4.5-6.6%) reported intentionally delaying one or more, and 5.4% (4.1-6.9%) reported refusing one or more vaccines. In 2014, the acceptance, delay, and refusal rates were 90.8% (89.3-92.1%), 5.6% (4.6-6.9%), and 3.6% (2.8-4.5%), respectively. Between 2012 and 2014, intentional vaccine refusal decreased slightly among parents of older children (2-6years) but not younger children (0-1years). The proportion of parents working to catch up on all vaccines increased while those refusing some but not all vaccines decreased. The South experienced a significant increase in estimated acceptance (90.1-94.1%) and a significant decrease in intentional ongoing refusal (5.0-2.1%). Vaccine delay increased in the Northeast (3.2-8.8%).ConclusionsNationally, acceptance and ongoing intentional delay of recommended non-influenza childhood vaccines were stable. These findings suggest that more effort is warranted to counter persistent vaccine hesitancy, particularly at the local level. Longitudinal monitoring of immunization attitudes is also warranted to evaluate temporal shifts over time and geographically.Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

23 keywords...

hide…