Vaccine hesitancy in the U.S.

Statistics report about vaccine hesitancy in the United States

Vaccine hesitancy in the U.S.

This report presents key facts and figures about vaccine hesitancy in the United States. Vaccine hesitancy refers to vaccine reluctance or refusal, usually due to misconceptions about the safety or effectiveness of vaccines. The anti-vaccination movement has grown in recent years in places such as the United States and Europe, despite overwhelming evidence of the effectiveness of vaccinations. The COVID-19 pandemic proved just how prevalent vaccine hesitancy is, as large shares of people around the world expressed hesitancy at recieving a vaccination against the virus. This report contains a brief overview of vaccine hesitancy worldwide before focusing specifically on the United States, providing information on reasons for vaccine hesitancy, refusals and exemptions, petitions filed for injuries and deaths caused by vaccines, and public opinion, and a special focus on vaccine hesitancy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Table of contents

Global overview

8
  • Premium Statistic Global vaccination coverage in 2022, by vaccine type
  • Basic Statistic Number of vaccine-preventable disease cases worldwide 1980-2021, by disease
  • Basic Statistic Share of people worldwide who feel it's important for children to have vaccines 2018
  • Premium Statistic Share of people globally strongly or somewhat agreeing vaccines are safe 2018
  • Basic Statistic Share of people globally strongly or somewhat agreeing vaccines are effective 2018
  • Premium Statistic Countries most likely to disagree that vaccines are important for children 2018
  • Basic Statistic Countries with the highest rates of people in disagreement over vaccine safety 2018
  • Basic Statistic Countries with highest disagreement over vaccine effectiveness worldwide in 2018

Vaccine-preventable disease cases and vaccination rates

9
  • Basic Statistic Cases of infectious diseases before and after the use of vaccines U.S. 2017
  • Premium Statistic New cases of mumps in the U.S. 1970-2019
  • Basic Statistic New cases of mumps in the U.S. 1970-2019
  • Basic Statistic New cases of measles in the U.S. 1950-2022
  • Premium Statistic Rate of new cases of measles in the U.S. 1950-2019
  • Premium Statistic Share of U.S. teenagers who had select vaccinations 2021-2022
  • Basic Statistic Share of U.S. children who received all doses of recommended vaccines 2017
  • Basic Statistic MMR vaccination rate among U.S. children aged 19-35 months 1995-2017
  • Premium Statistic U.S. states with the lowest percent of children receiving vaccinations U.S. 2021

Hesitancy and exemptions

6
  • Basic Statistic Vaccines families were most likely to refuse in the U.S. 2016
  • Basic Statistic Reasons U.S. families gave health care professionals for refusing vaccinations 2016
  • Basic Statistic Adults' reasons for not getting the flu vaccine in the U.S. as of 2018
  • Premium Statistic Religious and philosophical exemptions to vaccinations in the U.S. in 2018, by state
  • Basic Statistic Percentage of kindergarteners with vaccine exemptions in the U.S. in 2018, by state
  • Premium Statistic Share of U.S. infants with a parental vaccination refusal 2010-2016, by state

Injury and death from vaccinations

3
  • Basic Statistic Number of petitions filed per year for damages caused by vaccines U.S. 1988-2023
  • Premium Statistic Number of petitions filed for injury or death caused by vaccines U.S. 1988-2023
  • Premium Statistic Number of petitions filed for damages caused by vaccines U.S. 1988-2023, by outcome

Public opinion

9
  • Basic Statistic U.S. adults who felt it important for children to get vaccinated 2001, 2015, and 2019
  • Premium Statistic U.S. adults who felt the government should require childhood vaccinations 1991-2019
  • Basic Statistic Support for universal immunization in the U.S. in 2019, by age
  • Basic Statistic U.S. adults that believed vaccines were important for societal health 2008 and 2018
  • Basic Statistic Opinions on the importance of vaccines according to U.S. adults 2018 vs 2020
  • Premium Statistic U.S. adults who felt they benefited from vaccines as of 2008 and 2018
  • Basic Statistic U.S. adults who believed vaccines cause autism in 2015 and 2019
  • Basic Statistic U.S. adults who heard a lot about the disadvantages of child vaccinations 2001-2019
  • Basic Statistic U.S. adults who thought vaccines were more dangerous than disease in 2001 to 2019

COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy

9
  • Basic Statistic U.S. adults who would get a coronavirus vaccine, Jan. 2020 to Jan. 2021
  • Basic Statistic COVID-19 vaccine and willingness among U.S. adults Dec 2020 - Apr 2022
  • Basic Statistic U.S. adults who are COVID-19 vaccine hesitant as of Dec. 2020, by group
  • Basic Statistic COVID-19 vaccination and intent among younger U.S. adults, Mar-May 2021, by age
  • Basic Statistic Likelihood older U.S. adults will get a COVID-19 vaccination as of Oct. 2020
  • Basic Statistic Likelihood older U.S. adults will get a COVID vaccination as of Oct. 2020, by group
  • Basic Statistic Reasons for not intending to get the COVID-19 vaccine among U.S. adults in Dec. 2020
  • Basic Statistic Reasons for COVID-19 vaccine refusal among younger U.S. adults, Mar-May 2021
  • Basic Statistic Reasons older U.S. adults were unlikely to get COVID vaccine, Oct. 2020, by ethnicity

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