Just 16% of pregnant women in US received COVID-19 shot as of early May
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As of May 8, just 16% of pregnant women in the United States had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to findings published in MMWR.
An analysis of the CDC’s Vaccine Safety Datalink — a partnership between the CDC and various health systems — showed that the lowest vaccination rates for pregnant women were among Hispanic (11.9%) and non-Hispanic Black (6%) women.
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“Although low, COVID-19 vaccination coverage among pregnant women is expected to increase as vaccine availability and access improve, and as more safety data become available,” CDC epidemiologist Hilda Razzaghi, PhD, and colleagues wrote. “Addressing barriers to access as well as augmenting the scientific evidence regarding safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in pregnancy are critical.”
Razzaghi and colleagues analyzed vaccination data collected between Dec. 14, 2020, and May 8, 2021, from 135,968 pregnant women. Vaccination was defined as a person having received one or more dose of any COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy. Vaccine initiation was defined as a person having received the first dose of a two-dose COVID-19 vaccine.
Of the pregnant women, 22,197 (16.3%) received one or more doses of vaccine during pregnancy in the study period. Additionally, 7,154 (5.3%) of the women initiated vaccination and 15,043 (11.1%) completed their vaccination.
Vaccination rates among pregnant women were highest in women aged 35 to 49 years (22.7%) and lowest in women aged 18 to 24 years (5.5%). Vaccination rates were higher among pregnant non-Hispanic Asian (24.7%) and non-Hispanic white (19.7%) women.
“Vaccine misinformation and hesitancy should be addressed. Strategies and approaches to expanding vaccination coverage in ways to ensure and prioritize equity also should be implemented,” the authors wrote. “Finally, making accurate and timely information available to health care providers and pregnant women could increase confidence and thus acceptance of COVID-19 vaccines in this population.”
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