So, the Delta variant is raging and the U.S. is missing its vaccination goals. We've already had more Covid-19 infections in August already than all of July. In fact, the number of daily new cases is currently over twice the amount at the same time last year (129K vs 55K), though thankfully the number of daily deaths is just half (564 vs 1,140), primarily due to vaccines. Unvaccinated persons are responsible for 97% of hospitalizations and 99% of deaths, according to the CDC.
(click chart to enlarge)
Yet, vaccination rate has stalled at around the 50% mark for the U.S. population, despite widespread availability...But why? We'll based on the findings from a new paper by researchers at the University of Pittsburg and Carnegie Mellon there's no simple answer. In fact, a surprisingly diverse group of people are hesitant to get vaccinated against Covid-19:
Age Group:
So...yeah, not surprisingly a much higher % of younger people are resistant to vaccines that older folks, probably because they are generally less impacted by Covid-19 (and basically every other virus/disease). These numbers are probably closely related to the next group.
What, Me Worry? Group:
Percentage of each group that is somewhat vaccine hesitant.
Probably the biggest motivator for people to get a vaccine or not is simply whether or not they believe they, or their immediate family, can get severely ill from Covid-19. Those who worry they may show far less hesitancy than those who don't. It would be interesting to see the median ages of the "not worried at all" and "worried" cohorts. We'd guess some overlap between the above two charts.
Race/Ethnicity:
Hmm, this one is a bit surprising. We've read about how Blacks and Native American communities are less inclined to get vaccinated due to historical reasons. But that doesn't seem to be the case for Blacks in these findings. In fact, if anything Whites are more hesitant. Native Americans though do show higher resistance based on mistrust of the government. What is most perplexing is the Multi-Racial group.
Education:
Percentage of each group that is somewhat vaccine hesitant.
Well, well, well...this chart punctures the idea only the ignorant and brainwashed have issues with vaccines. PhDs (which subjects?!), arguably society's best educated and most informed people, also are seemingly amongst the most skeptical about vaccines. A higher % of PhDs are less likely to get vaccinated than those with less education. By comparison, Master's degree holders have the least issue. Hmm, I guess as holders of the education middle ground (between high school drop outs and PhDs), they are "moderates" of this category.
Employment Status:
Also surprising is that a higher % of people working outside the home are more resistant to vaccines than those working at home. Go figure.
Region:
East, West, North, South...not much difference.
Urban vs Rural:
This one is consistent with most media reports. A higher % rural folks are hesitant to get vaccinated compared to urban dwellers. And the relationship is almost linearly higher as you go from Large Central Metro (city centers) to Non-Core (which are CDC classifications of counties).
Politics:
Are Trump supporters really less likely to get vaccinated?...Um, yes. The researchers found that Counties with heavy Trump support in the 2020 elections had higher % of vaccination hesitancy than counties with less support. And the former President is just adding to that calculus.
Reasons Why?
So, from the above we get a sense who are hesitant to get vaccinated. The researchers then sought to understand why.
The biggest reasons are lack of trust...trust in the vaccine, trust in government. Religious beliefs, health issues and costs are comparatively small reasons. The most surprising reason: doctor had not recommended it? Huh? Who are these doctors? These findings are not all that different from a recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey.
So, many different types of people are skeptical about vaccines. But their reasons are mostly the same: lack of trust.
No comments:
Post a Comment