Childhood vaccine coverage lower among uninsured, children living below poverty level
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Key takeaways:
- Of VFC-eligible children born in 2020, 90% received first doses or earlier doses of vaccines.
- Just 61.4% of VFC-eligible children born in 2020 had completed the combined seven-vaccine series by age 2 years.
Children born from 2011 to 2020 who were uninsured or living below the federal poverty level had lower vaccination coverage than insured children or those living at or above the federal poverty level, according to a CDC press release.
As Healio previously reported, a study estimated that routine childhood immunizations prevented more than 1.1 million deaths since 1994, when the CDC’s Vaccines for Children (VFC) program, which provides free immunizations to children whose families are unable to pay for them, was founded.
More than 40 million children are eligible for VFC, and about half of them receive vaccines through the program, Georgina Peacock, MD, MPH, FAAP, director of CDC’s Immunization Services Division, said during a press conference. However, she said there are still gaps in vaccine coverage among VFC-eligible children, especially for vaccines that require multiple doses.
Among VFC-eligible children born in 2020, 90% received the first doses of varicella vaccine and MMR and three or more doses of vaccines against polio and hepatitis B virus, which are administered earlier in life. However, just 61.4% received all doses in the combined seven-vaccine series by age 2 years. The series includes DTaP and vaccines against polio, measles, Haemophilus influenzae type B, HBV, varicella and pneumonia.
Vaccine coverage among uninsured VFC-eligible children born in 2020 was around 19 to 35 percentage points lower — depending on the vaccine — compared with children insured with Medicaid, according to data from a Vital Signs report published after the press conference.
Uninsured children were more likely to live at or below the federal poverty level. VFC-eligible children living below the federal poverty level had lower vaccination coverage than children living at or above the poverty level, except for MMR.
“Health care providers are our crucial partners to increase the number of children who complete their vaccine series and reach those children living below the poverty level and without health insurance,” CDC Chief Medical Officer Debra Houry, MD, MPH, said in the press conference.
“Health care providers can promote vaccinations by encouraging all recommended childhood vaccines, strengthening family provider relationships, educating parents about vaccine benefits and participating in the VFC program to provide vaccinations during routine appointments for those who qualify,” Houry said.
Reference:
- CDC. Vital Signs: Vaccines for Children (VFC) program. https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/vaccines-for-children/index.html. Updated Aug. 13, 2024. Accessed Aug. 13, 2024.
- Valier MR, et al. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2024;doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm7333e1.
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