Vaccine-hesitant Americans list false side effects among concerns: poll

Coronavirus vaccine-hesitant Americans list multiple false or undocumented side effects — such as DNA alteration — among their reasons for not getting the shot, according to a recent Harris poll reported by Axios on Monday.

Among the 1,061 people in the survey who say they are unlikely to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and listed side effects as a concern, 60 percent named blood clots, which have indeed been reported in extremely rare cases. But 24 percent listed infertility, and just as many cited potential birth defects, which are not considered possible from any of the vaccines that have been approved. 

Twenty-two percent said they were concerned about potentially getting cancer from their coronavirus vaccine, another false side effect.

Approximately 65 percent of baby boomers and half of Generation Z respondents said they were concerned about potential flu-like symptoms, which are possible after the shots. 

Polling results are based on interviews conducted on April 23 to 25 and May 7 to 9. A margin of error was not listed.

Lingering hesitancy about the shots poses a stumbling block as the Biden administration seeks to vaccinate harder-to-reach Americans.

Earlier this month, President Biden announced a goal of getting at least one shot into 70 percent of Americans and to have at least 160 million adults fully vaccinated by July 4. 

“As we anticipated, the pace of vaccinations is slowing, now that the majority of American adults have already gotten their first shot,” Biden said on May 4. “Soon we’ll have reached the adults who are most eager to get vaccinated and at that point this effort will shift to a new phase.”