MMR vaccination more common among children whose parents got COVID-19 shot
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Key takeaways:
- Parental race, ethnicity, political leaning and COVID-19 vaccination were associated with children’s MMR vaccination rates.
- Parents on Medicare, Medicaid or no insurance were less likely to vaccinate.
Parents vaccinated against COVID-19 were almost twice as likely to vaccinate their child against measles, mumps and rubella compared with unvaccinated parents, according to a study published in American Journal of Public Health.
The MMR vaccination rate among kindergarteners has fallen below 93% in the United States, and 14 states reported exemption rates above 5% among kindergarteners during the 2023-2024 school year for at least one vaccine. Experts have warned that declining vaccination rates could lead to measles outbreaks.
“Engaging parents in open, empathetic discussions about vaccine safety and efficacy is key to building trust and addressing hesitancy,” Eric G. Zhou, PhD, instructor of pediatrics and population health science and policy at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, told Healio. “Additionally, understanding the broader societal and systemic factors shaping parental decisions can better equip pediatricians to navigate these evolving challenges.”
Zhou and colleagues analyzed survey responses from 19,892 parents of children aged younger than 5 years. The responses were collected between July 2023 and April 2024 through OutbreaksNearMe, an anonymous digital health surveillance survey hosted by SurveyMonkey.
Overall, 71.8% (95% CI, 70.4%-73.2%) of respondents said their child had received at least one dose of MMR.
Compared with white parents, parents who were Black or Hispanic were half as likely to vaccinate their child (OR = 0.44; 95% CI, 0.39-0.49, and OR = 0.5; 95% CI, 0.44-0.57), the researchers reported. Asian parents were also less likely to get their child the MMR vaccine (OR = 0.63; 95% CI, 0.52-0.78).
Insurance coverage also affected MMR vaccine uptake. Compared with those on private insurance, parents who were uninsured or on Medicare or Medicaid were less likely to vaccine their child (OR = 0.78; 95% CI, 0.67-0.9, and OR = 0.84; 95% CI, 0.76-0.94, respectively).
Parents who were vaccinated against COVD-19 were more likely vaccinate their child against measles, mumps and rubella, compared with parents who did not get the COVID-19 shot (OR = 1.84; 95% CI, 1.68-2).
Parents who identified as Republicans or independents were also less likely to vaccinate their children compared with Democrats (OR = 0.72; 95% CI, 0.64-0.82, and OR = 0.79; 95% CI, 0.71-0.88). However, living in a county that primarily voted for Donald Trump in 2020 did not significantly affect MMR vaccine uptake vs. counties that primarily voted for Joe Biden.
“One surprising finding was the strong association between parental COVID-19 vaccination status and their children’s MMR uptake, even after accounting for variables like political preferences and socioeconomic characteristics,” Zhou told Healio. “This underscores how pandemic-related beliefs and attitudes can influence routine pediatric vaccination decisions.”
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