Most Americans may skip updated COVID-19 vaccine, survey finds
FILE - A healthcare worker administers the Pfizer-BioNTech (Comirnaty) COVID-19 booster jab to a boy during the vaccination campaign.
After years of long lines and occasional shortages, more Americans are opting not to get the updated COVID-19 vaccine this year, according to a new national survey.
The survey – which polled adults 18 and up, mostly online, in August – was commissioned by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases. It found that "the majority of US adults (61%) do not plan to or are unsure if they will get an updated COVID-19 vaccine this season."
"It’s not novel anymore, it’s not new, it’s not as scary as it used to be, and when people don’t have that, they become a little bit more complacent," explained Christy Gray, director of the Division of Immunization at the Virginia Department of Health.
Americans can order free COVID-19 tests beginning this month: What to know
Free COVID-19 tests will be available to U.S. households beginning this month. Here's what to know.
Gray added that other factors could be in play as well, including that this year, it’s harder for people who are under or uninsured to get the vaccine for free.
"It does concern me," Gray said of the prospect that most Americans may choose not to get the updated vaccine. "The tricky thing about COVID-19 is that it’s unpredictable, so a lot of times you – ‘Oh I already had it, it wasn’t a big deal, it wasn’t a problem,’ but you don’t know if it’s gonna be like that the next time."
That’s one reason others said – new polling or not – they still plan to get the shot.
"I can’t really say why people wouldn’t do it, but to me, it’s important," Cristina Medina said Thursday in Arlington.
To read the full survey, which also polled Americans on their attitudes towards other respiratory illnesses, including the flu, you can click here.