Vaccine hesitancy

An anti-vaccination activist with a misleading claim that children can be effectively protected from disease solely by natural immunity
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Vaccine hesitancy is a delay in acceptance, or refusal, of vaccines despite the availability of vaccine services and supporting evidence. The term covers refusals to vaccinate, delaying vaccines, accepting vaccines but remaining uncertain about their use, or using certain vaccines but not others.[1][2][3][4] Although adverse effects associated with vaccines are occasionally observed,[5] the scientific consensus that vaccines are generally safe and effective is overwhelming.[6][7][8][9] Vaccine hesitancy often results in disease outbreaks and deaths from vaccine-preventable diseases.[10][11][12][13][14][15] Therefore, the World Health Organization characterizes vaccine hesitancy as one of the top ten global health threats.[16][17]

Vaccine hesitancy is complex and context-specific, varying across time, place and vaccines.[18] It can be influenced by factors such as lack of proper scientifically based knowledge and understanding about how vaccines are made or work, as well as psychological factors including fear of needles[2] and distrust of public authorities, a person's lack of confidence (mistrust of the vaccine and/or healthcare provider), complacency (the person does not see a need for the vaccine or does not see the value of the vaccine), and convenience (access to vaccines).[3] It has existed since the invention of vaccination and pre-dates the coining of the terms "vaccine" and "vaccination" by nearly eighty years.[19]

"Anti-vaccinationism" refers to total opposition to vaccination. Anti-vaccinationists have been known as "anti-vaxxers" or "anti-vax".[20] The specific hypotheses raised by anti-vaccination advocates have been found to change over time.[19] Anti-vaccine activism has been increasingly connected to political and economic goals.[21][22] Although myths, conspiracy theories, misinformation and disinformation spread by the anti-vaccination movement and fringe doctors leads to vaccine hesitancy and public debates around the medical, ethical, and legal issues related to vaccines, there is no serious hesitancy or debate within mainstream medical and scientific circles about the benefits of vaccination.[23]

Proposed laws that mandate vaccination, such as California Senate Bill 277 and Australia's No Jab No Pay, have been opposed by anti-vaccination activists and organizations.[24][25][26] Opposition to mandatory vaccination may be based on anti-vaccine sentiment, concern that it violates civil liberties or reduces public trust in vaccination, or suspicion of profiteering by the pharmaceutical industry.[12][27][28][29][30]

  1. ^ The Editors (May 2019). "Vaccine hesitancy: a generation at risk". The Lancet. Child & Adolescent Health. 3 (5): 281. doi:10.1016/S2352-4642(19)30092-6. PMID 30981382. S2CID 115201206.
  2. ^ a b Smith MJ (December 2015). "Promoting Vaccine Confidence". Infectious Disease Clinics of North America (Review). 29 (4): 759–769. doi:10.1016/j.idc.2015.07.004. PMID 26337737.
  3. ^ a b Larson HJ, Jarrett C, Eckersberger E, Smith DM, Paterson P (April 2014). "Understanding vaccine hesitancy around vaccines and vaccination from a global perspective: a systematic review of published literature, 2007-2012". Vaccine. 32 (19): 2150–2159. doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2014.01.081. PMID 24598724.
  4. ^ Cataldi JR, O'Leary ST (October 2021). "Parental vaccine hesitancy: scope, causes, and potential responses". Current Opinion in Infectious Diseases. 34 (5): 519–526. doi:10.1097/QCO.0000000000000774. PMID 34524202. S2CID 237437018.
  5. ^ Yasmin F, Najeeb H, Naeem U, Moeed A, Atif AR, Asghar MS, et al. (March 2023). "Adverse events following COVID-19 mRNA vaccines: A systematic review of cardiovascular complication, thrombosis, and thrombocytopenia". Immunity, Inflammation and Disease. 11 (3): e807. doi:10.1002/iid3.807. PMC 10022421. PMID 36988252.
  6. ^ "Communicating science-based messages on vaccines". Bulletin of the World Health Organization. 95 (10): 670–671. October 2017. doi:10.2471/BLT.17.021017. PMC 5689193. PMID 29147039.
  7. ^ "Why do some people oppose vaccination?". Vox. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
  8. ^ Ceccarelli L. "Defending science: How the art of rhetoric can help". The Conversation. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
  9. ^ U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "Vaccines.gov". Vaccines.gov. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  10. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)". Boston Children's Hospital. Archived from the original on October 17, 2013. Retrieved February 11, 2014.
  11. ^ Phadke VK, Bednarczyk RA, Salmon DA, Omer SB (March 2016). "Association Between Vaccine Refusal and Vaccine-Preventable Diseases in the United States: A Review of Measles and Pertussis". JAMA. 315 (11): 1149–1158. doi:10.1001/jama.2016.1353. PMC 5007135. PMID 26978210.
  12. ^ a b Wolfe RM, Sharp LK (August 2002). "Anti-vaccinationists past and present". BMJ. 325 (7361): 430–432. doi:10.1136/bmj.325.7361.430. PMC 1123944. PMID 12193361.
  13. ^ Poland GA, Jacobson RM (January 2011). "The age-old struggle against the antivaccinationists". The New England Journal of Medicine. 364 (2): 97–99. doi:10.1056/NEJMp1010594. PMID 21226573. S2CID 39229852.
  14. ^ Wallace A (October 19, 2009). "An epidemic of fear: how panicked parents skipping shots endangers us all". Wired. Retrieved October 21, 2009.
  15. ^ Poland GA, Jacobson RM (March 2001). "Understanding those who do not understand: a brief review of the anti-vaccine movement". Vaccine. 19 (17–19): 2440–2445. doi:10.1016/S0264-410X(00)00469-2. PMID 11257375. S2CID 1978650.
  16. ^ "Ten threats to global health in 2019". Who.int. Archived from the original on June 27, 2019. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  17. ^ Georgiou A (January 15, 2019). "The anti-vax movement has been listed by WHO as one of its top 10 health threats for 2019". Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  18. ^ "Report of the SAGE working group on vaccine hesitancy" (PDF). WHO. October 1, 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 22, 2018.
  19. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Gerber was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ Hinsliff G (November 16, 2020). "It's the 'vaccine hesitant', not anti-vaxxers, who are troubling public health experts". TheGuardian.com.
  21. ^ Carpiano RM, Callaghan T, DiResta R, Brewer NT, Clinton C, Galvani AP, et al. (March 2023). "Confronting the evolution and expansion of anti-vaccine activism in the USA in the COVID-19 era". Lancet. 401 (10380): 967–970. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(23)00136-8. PMC 9981160. PMID 36871571.
  22. ^ Herasimenka A, Au Y, George A, Joynes-Burgess K, Knuutila A, Bright J, et al. (April 2023). "The political economy of digital profiteering: communication resource mobilization by anti-vaccination actors". The Journal of Communication. 73 (2): 126–137. doi:10.1093/joc/jqac043. PMC 10066223. PMID 37016634.
  23. ^ Dubé È, Ward JK, Verger P, MacDonald NE (April 2021). "Vaccine Hesitancy, Acceptance, and Anti-Vaccination: Trends and Future Prospects for Public Health". Annual Review of Public Health. 42 (1): 175–191. doi:10.1146/annurev-publhealth-090419-102240. PMID 33798403. S2CID 232774243. the scientific and medical consensus on the benefits of vaccination is clear and unambiguous
  24. ^ "The Long History of America's Anti-Vaccination Movement". DiscoverMagazine.com. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  25. ^ Young Z (November 21, 2018). "How anti-vax went viral". Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  26. ^ "How the anti-vaxxers are winning in Italy". September 28, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  27. ^ Chang J (July 12, 2017). "'Civil liberties' at center of vaccination debate in Texas". Mystatesman. Austin American-Statesman. Archived from the original on July 13, 2017. Retrieved July 28, 2018.
  28. ^ Elliman D, Bedford H (March 23, 2014). "In Britain, Vaccinate With Persuasion, not Coercion". The New York Times.
  29. ^ "Anti-vaxxers have embraced social media. We're paying for fake news with real lives". June 28, 2017. Archived from the original on April 5, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  30. ^ Lam B (February 10, 2015). "Vaccines Are Profitable, So What?". The Atlantic.