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. 2021 Sep;69(3):511-514.
doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.06.003. Epub 2021 Jul 14.

Young Adult Perspectives on COVID-19 Vaccinations

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Young Adult Perspectives on COVID-19 Vaccinations

Sally H Adams et al. J Adolesc Health. 2021 Sep.

Abstract

Purpose: Young adults have the highest cumulative incidence of COVID-19 infection in the country. Using March 2021 Household Pulse Survey data, an ongoing, cross-sectional nationally representative survey, we examined U.S. young adult intention to accept COVID-19 vaccines.

Methods: Young adult (ages 18-25 years) Household Pulse Survey participants were queried on intention to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and related perspectives (N = 5,082).

Results: Most unvaccinated respondents (76%) indicated an intention to become vaccinated. The most frequently cited reasons for potentially rejecting vaccination included desire to wait and see if the vaccine is safe (56%); concerns over side effects (53%); and believing others are in greater need of the vaccine (44%).

Conclusions: With 24% of young adults hesitant to accept a COVID-19 vaccine, public health interventions should target reasons for hesitancy, address concerns about safety and side effects, and underscore the importance of vaccinations for this population.

Keywords: COVID-19; COVID-19 vaccine; COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy; Vaccine; Vaccine hesitancy; Vaccine intention; Young adult.

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References

    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Demographic trends of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the US reported to CDC web site. https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#demographics Available at:
    1. Adams S.H., Park M.J., Schaub J.P. Medical vulnerability of young adults to severe COVID-19 illness-data from the National Health Interview Survey. J Adolesc Health. 2020;67:362–368. - PMC - PubMed
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