Eric G. Zhou, PhD
Young children of parents who declined the COVID-19 vaccine were about 25 percent less likely to receive vaccination against measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR), according to the results of a new study. Historic political and socioeconomic disparities remain important predictors of MMR vaccine hesitancy, but the pandemic appears to have further increased MMR skepticism, researchers said.
“Our research highlights the link between parental characteristics and MMR vaccine uptake, showing how pandemic-related hesitancy may affect other routine vaccines,” said Eric G. Zhou, PhD, Instructor, Pediatrics, Cardiology, and Population Health Science and Policy at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, a lead author of the study. “Addressing these disparities, through equitable access and fostering trust and transparency in vaccine safety, is key to protecting children from preventable diseases like measles.”
The researchers conducted a cross-sectional study from July 2023 to April 2024 using a digital health survey to examine national population characteristics.
They analyzed responses from more than 19,000 parents of children younger than 5 years old to examine the association between self-reported parental characteristics (i.e., sociodemographics, politics, COVID-19 vaccination status) and children’s MMR vaccination rates, using logistic regression. The study was published January 16 in the American Journal of Public Health.
Children of parents who received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine had higher MMR vaccination rates (80.8 percent) than did children of unvaccinated parents (60.9 percent). The researchers found higher MMR vaccination rates in the Northeast and Midwest regions of the United States.
“In the United States, we are experiencing a concerning resurgence of childhood vaccine-preventable diseases,” said Ben Rader, PhD, of Boston Children’s Hospital, the study’s corresponding author. “Our research suggests that COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy has fueled increasing MMR vaccine hesitancy, leaving children more vulnerable to highly contagious and life-threatening illnesses like measles.”
