Story at a glance
- A CDC study released Tuesday found 49.1 percent of Americans said they were absolutely certain or very likely to get vaccinated in December, a jump from the 39.4 percent who said the same in September.
- According to the CDC, younger adults, women, Black Americans, adults living in nonmetropolitan areas, and those with lower education levels and lower income were among the groups most likely to say they didn’t intend to receive the vaccine.
- “Although confidence in COVID-19 vaccines increased during September–December 2020 in the United States, additional efforts to tailor messages and implement strategies to further increase the public’s confidence, overall and within specific subpopulations, are needed,” the author’s of the study wrote.
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that the number of American adults willing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine has significantly increased, but more needs to be done to ramp up public confidence in the crucial shot.
A CDC study released Tuesday surveyed 3,541 Americans in September and 2,033 in December and found vaccine willingness increased late last year after many adults were initially hesitant to get the vaccine.
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The survey released in the agency’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly report found 49.1 percent of Americans said they were absolutely certain or very likely to get vaccinated in December, a jump from the 39.4 percent who said the same in September. The increase came as Pfizer received emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
With adults who said they were “somewhat likely” to get vaccinated included, the numbers rose from 61.9 percent in September to 68 percent in December.
The largest increases in willingness to receive the vaccine were seen in adults 65 and older, essential workers and adults with underlying health conditions.
According to the CDC, younger adults, women, Black Americans, adults living in nonmetropolitan areas, those with lower education levels and lower income were among the groups most likely to say they didn’t intend to receive the vaccine.
Reasons most frequently cited were concerns over side effects and safety of the vaccines.
“Although confidence in COVID-19 vaccines increased during September–December 2020 in the United States, additional efforts to tailor messages and implement strategies to further increase the public’s confidence, overall and within specific subpopulations, are needed,” the author’s of the study wrote.
“Ensuring high and equitable vaccination coverage among all populations, including by addressing reasons for not intending to receive vaccination, is critical to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and bring an end to the pandemic,” the study states.
The CDC report comes as more recent polling has shown the share of Americans willing to take the vaccine is growing. A Kaiser Family Foundation poll taken between Jan. 11 and Jan. 18 found nearly half of Americans want the vaccine.
As of Tuesday, nearly 63 million vaccine doses have been distributed across the country and more than 43 million have been administered, according to the CDC.
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