More Pennsylvania parents opt out of vaccines for kids
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More Pennsylvania parents are opting out of vaccinating their children for religious or personal reasons.
Why it matters: As a new school year gets underway, lingering vaccine hesitancy from the pandemic is evident in pediatricians' offices as more parents reject the shots for measles, chickenpox and whooping cough, among others.
- While official data lags by several months, public health experts told Axios that anecdotal reports suggest child vaccination rates continue to fall, leaving the population more vulnerable to outbreaks.
The big picture: U.S. parents still overwhelmingly support childhood vaccinations. But kindergarten exemptions rose to a median of 3.3% nationally during the 2022-2023 school year, up from 2.7% the year before.
- A Gallup Poll last month found that 69% of respondents view childhood vaccines as "extremely" or "very" important, down from 94% in 2001.
- Gallup attributed the drop to people who lean Republican, noting the percentage of that cohort saying childhood vaccinations are "extremely important" stood at 26% this year, compared to 62% in 2001.
Zoom in: 3.8% of Pennsylvania kindergartners had vaccine exemptions in the 2022–23 school year, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- That's up from 3.3% statewide in the 2021–22 school year.
- In Philadelphia, the 2022–23 rate ticked up slightly to 1.7% from 1.5% in the 2021–22 school year, per state data.
Between the lines: UPenn's Annenberg Public Policy Center says false beliefs about vaccines remain prevalent.
- The CDC says there's no evidence linking the MMR vaccine to autism. But a quarter of U.S. adults believe that statement is "somewhat or very inaccurate," according to a recent survey of over 1,500 people conducted by the center.
- Some people believe COVID-19 vaccine misinformation, such as that the shots caused thousands of deaths and alter our DNA, per the center.
What they're saying: Kathleen Hall Jamieson, the center's director, tells Axios pro-vaccination public messaging isn't as prominent post-pandemic, allowing those who amplify anti-vax beliefs to fill the void.
- "They have more of a playing field," she says. "They haven't stood down. The balance of information matters."
Zoom out: The ease of opting out of vaccinations varies by state and can have a direct bearing on uptake, Megan Ranney, dean of the Yale School of Public Health, told Axios.
Yes, but: It's not just hesitancy — "a perfect storm" of factors like physician shortages and pharmacy closures are putting a drag on vaccination rates, says FarmboxRx CEO Ashley Tyrner.
How it works: Pennsylvania grants exemptions if a doctor determines the vaccine isn't safe for a student or if the student is opposed because of religious or personal beliefs.
What's next: New COVID-19 vaccine boosters are being rolled out to local pharmacies.