Those living in a state with a vaccine mandate during 2020 to 2021 flu season had higher probability of receiving flu shot<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter<\/b><\/p>\n
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TUESDAY, Oct. 10, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Children living in states with a vaccine mandate during the 2020 to 2021 influenza season had a higher predicted probability of receiving an influenza vaccine, according to a study published online Oct. 10 in Pediatrics<\/em>.<\/p>\n Claire Abraham, M.D., M.P.H., from Harvard Medical School in Boston, and colleagues examined whether a state influenza vaccine mandate and elevated community COVID-19 severity affected a child’s probability of receiving an influenza vaccine during the 2020 to 2021 influenza season. Enrollment and claims data were obtained for 71,333 children aged 6 months to 18 years living in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine.<\/p>\n The researchers found that compared with children living in states without a mandate, those living in a state with a vaccine mandate during the 2020 to 2021 influenza season had a higher predicted probability of receiving an influenza vaccine (47.7 versus 21.2 percent for previous nonvaccinators and 78.2 versus 58.2 percent for previous vaccinators); among previous nonvaccinators, the difference was 6.5 percentage points greater. Previously vaccinated children had a lower predicted probability of receiving an influenza vaccine if they lived in a county with the highest versus lowest COVID-19 severity (72.1 versus 77.3 percent).<\/p>\n “Strategies to improve uptake of influenza vaccination may have differential impacts based on previous vaccination acceptance and must account for community factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic,” the authors write.<\/strong><\/p>\n