Why so Hesitant?

By Alli Brown

Vaccines have long been questioned, thus, vaccine hesitancy was born. This occurs in the hesitancy obtaining booster shots, the accelerated timeline of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, and the misinformation of vaccines linked to autism. In regards to safety, these myths lead the public to ask the question “are these vaccines safe?” Despite the rigorous testing procedures conducted, the public yearns for guidance in their decision whether modern vaccines are reliable or unreliable. The CDC, news sources, and political organizations continue to update the public on controversies, as skepticism rises with the ongoing pressure to administer vaccines.

What is Vaccine Hesitancy? 

Pubmed explains vaccine hesitancy as “complex and context specific, varying across time, place and vaccines. It is influenced by factors such as complacency, convenience and confidence,” (Pubmed). The World Health Organization states that vaccine hesitancy is among one of the top ten threats to global health (TFAH). “High levels of hesitancy lead to low vaccine demand,” (Pubmed). 

Why so Hesitant?

Factors of vaccine hesitancy include transparency, religious and cultural beliefs, social influences, lack of education, and mistrust in authorities. In addition, hesitancy is most prominent in the safety concerns of accessibility, creation acceleration, and misinformation. 

One primary ongoing concern of vaccine hesitancy is accessibility. “People opt out of vaccination for many reasons. Those living farther from vaccine sites, on average, have lower rates of uptake,” (Maxmen). Financial accessibility also deters vaccination. Some countries do not provide free vaccination at sites and distance adds costs in transportation. In addition, vaccination sites with limited hours deters vaccination. Accessibility is just one of many factors that cause folks to resist the jab. 

Even when accessible, sustaining immunity requires boosters. Booster shots help to counteract emerging variants, protect vulnerable populations, and preserve herd immunity. USA Facts reports as of May 10, 2023, in the USA 70% of the population has received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. However, according to PBS as of September 17, 2023, “75% of people in the United States appear to have skipped last year’s bivalent booster,” (Maxmen).

Community immunity, or herd immunity, is when “a population can be protected from a certain virus if a threshold of vaccination is reached,” (Coronavirus). This proves true, however, those who choose not to get vaccinated put others and mainly themselves at risk. The purpose of a vaccine is to create a large number of immune people in the population so the virus cannot easily spread. We have reached herd immunity with past vaccines, but, for the future, if we do not achieve community immunity, effectiveness of vaccines may decrease: that is, 60-70% of the population needs to take the vaccines and boosters.

Urging the Concern

The COVID-19 vaccine is just one example of a shot that the public is hesitant to take. “The U.S. also remains vulnerable to vaccine-preventable diseases such as flu, hepatitis B, pneumococcal, and shingles, due to under-vaccination. The threat of increased hesitance could further endanger people at higher risk for severe outcomes including older adults and people with underlying health conditions,” (TFAH). Measles, with its worst breakout in two decades, barely passed its measles elimination status in 2019. (TFAH). Low vaccination rates also prove to correlate with outbreaks. In 2017-2018, only 42% received the flu shot, leading to 80,000 deaths and the deadliest flu season. Since then, the flu vaccination rate has yet to surpass 50%. 

Step on the Brakes!

With an accelerated timeline to create vaccines emerges major hesitancy. Vaccines typically take five to ten years to develop, involving highly controlled preclinical and clinical trials before approval. The COVID-19 vaccine raised many concerns for the process, as they were in the patient trial stages in less than a year. In a survey from Pewresearch 78% indicated their greatest concern taking the vaccine is the process would move too fast without fully establishing safety and effectiveness (Tyson). Maxmen, along with other sources, address how big of an issue vaccine hesitancy is. “Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, said the downturn of reporting on vaccination and Covid rates makes it harder to tailor outreach. ‘If we had the data, we could pivot quickly,’” (Maxmen). 

Providing the public with accessible information and data along with explaining the science behind vaccines and their safety record, combats misinformation. 

The Rise of Misinformation

Misinformation on vaccines most prominently occurred through the myth that vaccines are linked to autism. This false information stems from an article published in the 1900s. This article spread quickly, as there was a lot of funding that went into proving and eventually disproving that misconception. Many people hear misinformation through word of mouth and social media. This influences the way that people think and perceive vaccines. “In a study simulating a patient’s search for advice on the potential link between MMR and autism using the Google search engine, Scullard and collaborators have reported that only 51% of the websites provided the correct information about the fact that no association has ever been demonstrated between MMR vaccination and autism,” (Pubmed). This factors into why vaccine hesitancy was so prominent in the COVID-19 vaccine. Misinformation spreads like wildfire. This is especially true with social media platforms where the public is free to speak their minds and reach millions of people with just one click of a button. 

Sticking With the Truth quotes “You will see news reporters, including the BBC, saying stupid things like ‘The research has since been debunked.’ Wrong. The research never justified the media’s ludicrous over-interpretation. If they had paid attention, the scare would never have even started,” (Brainard). Sticking With the Truth also addresses public fears of vaccinations so much that parents refuse vaccinations for their children. This is the same concept that drives citizens to refuse vaccines as they contemplate their health. In reality, according to scientific research, the vaccine does more good than harm.

Going into Combat Against Anti-Vaxxers

Trusted sources like The University of Maryland Medical System push for vaccine confidence, as they dive into the nitty gritty of how vaccines are tested and exactly how it affects our bodies to fight against viruses. The FDA fully reviews the process and findings before deciding whether or not to approve these vaccines. The University of Maryland Medical System writes that all vaccines go under the same rigorous trials. Advancements in technology and ample funding help speed up the process. For example, the rigorous process for the COVID-19 vaccine goes as follows: The vaccine has mRNA technology that has a code for making the coronavirus spike protein. The protein is the key to the virus infecting cells as it triggers the immune system to make antibodies against the virus, but without causing infection. “The trials showed no serious safety concerns within eight weeks following vaccination, which is significant as it is unusual for adverse reactions to vaccines to occur after that period of time. Clinical trials for COVID-19 vaccines have involved tens of thousands of volunteers of different ages, races and ethnicities,” (University of Maryland Medical System). 

As vaccine hesitancy questions continue, scientists and public health officials speak out about vaccine hesitancy and the push for public confidence. Heidi Larson comments that even with an accelerated process, scientists are doing so in the right way via new technologies and the billions of dollars put into funding research. Fauci explains that when looking at the history of vaccinology and analyzing the data, more than 90% of studies done on safe vaccines prove that long term effects surface between 30 to 45 days. These studies disprove safety concerns, reassuring the public. 

Conclusion

The question remains: are vaccines safe? Despite numerous tests and advocates speaking out, vaccine hesitancy still remains heavy on the population’s minds due to factors like  accessibility, timeline acceleration, and misinformation. The FDA continues to scrutinize data from pharmaceutical companies to achieve the highest levels of approval to ensure safety. The World Health Organization along with the CDC continue to publicly promote vaccine confidence and ensure safe and efficient vaccination distribution. With vaccine confidence on the rise, hopes of a less hesitant future are on the horizon. 

Works Cited 

Brainard, Curtis. “Sticking with the Truth.” Columbia Journalism Review, archives.cjr.org/feature/sticking_with_the_truth.php.

“Coronavirus.” World Health Organization, World Health Organization, www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus.

“COVID Vaccine Testing and Approval.” University of Maryland Medical System, www.umms.org/coronavirus/covid-vaccine/testing 

Maxmen, Amy. “A New COVID Vaccine Is Here, but Those at Greatest Risk May Not Get It as Outreach Drops Off.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 17 Sept. 2023, www.pbs.org/newshour/health/a-new-covid-vaccine-is-here-but-those-at-greatest-risk-may-not-get-it-as-outreach-drops-off#:~:text=About%2075%20percent%20of%20people,be%20better%20this%20time%20around. 

“Pubmed”, MacDonald NE; “Vaccine Hesitancy: Definition, Scope and Determinants.” Vaccine, U.S. National Library of Medicine, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25896383/ 

“The Challenge of Vaccine Hesitancy Didn’t Start with Covid-19, and It Won’t End There.” TFAH, 8 Apr. 2022, www.tfah.org/story/the-challenge-of-vaccine-hesitancy/. 

Tyson, Alec, et al. “U.S. Public Now Divided Over Whether To Get COVID-19 Vaccine.” Pew Research Center Science & Society, Pew Research Center, 18 Sept. 2020, www.pewresearch.org/science/2020/09/17/u-s-public-now-divided-over-whether-to-get-covid-19-vaccine/

“US Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker.” USAFacts, 29 Mar. 2024, usafacts.org/visualizations/covid-vaccine-tracker-states/