Most Americans are uncertain about which vaccines are recommended during pregnancy, according to nationally representative survey findings released yesterday by the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) at the University of Pennsylvania.
The survey, which polled 1,031 US adults from July 1 through 5, found that among the four vaccines the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends during pregnancy, between 45% and 66% of respondents said they were not sure whether the agency recommends them.
“Our findings suggest that many Americans do not know which vaccines are recommended during pregnancy,” said Ken Winneg, APPC’s managing director of survey research. “The encouraging news is that relatively few people think that the CDC recommends vaccines that are not advised during pregnancy. The challenge is overcoming the widespread uncertainty over what the CDC does recommend.”
Awareness varied by vaccine
Awareness was highest for the seasonal flu vaccine, with 48% correctly identifying it as recommended during pregnancy. Uncertainty increased for the other recommended vaccines—31% correctly identified the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine, 30% identified the tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap) vaccine, and 23% the hepatitis B vaccine as recommended during pregnancy.
Women of childbearing age (18 to 49 years) were significantly more likely than other groups to correctly identify all four recommended vaccines, with 60% percent correctly identifying the flu vaccine as recommended during pregnancy, 43% recognizing Tdap, 36% RSV, and 30% hepatitis B.
More than half of respondents did not know whether the CDC recommends the COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy. The CDC says the COVID vaccine can help reduce the risk of severe illness, but it no longer explicitly recommends vaccination during pregnancy. Instead, it advises that the decision to get vaccinated be “based on individual decision making, which emphasizes considering the benefits and risks of vaccination.”
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists continues to strongly recommend updated COVID vaccination during pregnancy and lactation.
Knowledge gaps outweighed misconceptions
While uncertainty was common, relatively few respondents incorrectly believed the CDC recommends vaccines that are not advised during pregnancy. Twenty-one percent mistakenly said the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine is recommended, while 17% each incorrectly identified the human papillomavirus (HPV) and varicella (chickenpox) vaccines as recommended during pregnancy.
Current CDC guidance advises administering MMR and varicella vaccines before or after pregnancy because they are live-virus vaccines, which pose a theoretical risk of infecting the fetus. The CDC advises that HPV vaccination should be deferred until after pregnancy.
Many Americans routinely get their immunizations from their primary healthcare providers or at local pharmacies. It is critical that those professionals pay special attention to vaccine recommendations for recipients who are pregnant.
Women aged 18 to 49 years were no more likely to incorrectly identify these vaccines as recommended.
Patrick E. Jamieson, PhD, director of the Annenberg Health and Risk Communication Institute, said healthcare providers have an important role in closing these knowledge gaps.
“Many Americans routinely get their immunizations from their primary healthcare providers or at local pharmacies,” he said. “It is critical that those professionals pay special attention to vaccine recommendations for recipients who are pregnant.”
The survey has a margin of sampling error of ±3.4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
