Introduction & Objective: People with diabetes have increased risks for severe COVID-19 illness and are a priority group for vaccination. This study aimed to determine reasons for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among underserved adults with diabetes.
Methods: A survey of adults with insulin-requiring diabetes (n=450) receiving care at federally qualified health centers in CA and FL examined COVID-19 vaccine uptake and reasons for hesitancy. Surveys were completed from Nov. 2021-Jul. 2022. This study analyzed open-ended responses to a question assessing why patients were not vaccinated for COVID-19. Out of 80 patients who reported being unvaccinated, 67 answered the open-ended question (mean age=46.6 ± 15.1 years, 65.7% female). A thematic analysis using the 3 Cs of Vaccine Hesitancy Model (complacency, confidence, and convenience reasons) was used. Reasons for hesitancy that did not fit the 3 Cs were coded as demographic or unspecific. Descriptive statistics (n, %) determined the frequency of reasons reported; some patients noted multiple reasons.
Results: Patients reported 80 reasons for vaccine hesitancy. Most were lack of confidence (n=31, 38.8%), e.g., misinformation, distrust in research, and fears about vaccine efficacy and safety, or were unspecific (n=29, 36.3%), e.g., “I don’t want it”. Convenience reasons (n=11, 13.8%) included scheduling, eligibility, and health issues, e.g., vaccine allergies or surgeries. Complacency reasons (n=7, 8.8%) included low concern about COVID-19 compared to diabetes and low COVID-19 exposure due to limited social outings. Demographic reasons (n=2, 2.5%) were due to religious views.
Conclusion: COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among underserved adults with diabetes can be attributed to various factors e.g., distrust in research, inconvenience, higher concern about diabetes management, and religious views. Multilevel interventions are needed to reduce vaccine hesitancy among this population.
J. Maizel: None. T.A. Bautista: None. I.N. Prude: None. S.L. Filipp: None. M. Hechavarria: None. M.J. Haller: Consultant; Sanofi. Advisory Panel; SAB Biotherapeutics, Inc. Consultant; MannKind Corporation. S. Westen: None. B. Dixon: None. D.M. Maahs: Advisory Panel; Medtronic. Consultant; Abbott, LifeScan Diabetes Institute, Sanofi, Provention Bio, Inc., Bayer Inc., Kriya Therapeutics, BioSpex. R. Lal: Consultant; Abbott, Adaptyx Biosciences, Biolinq, Capillary Biomedical, Inc., Deep Valley Labs, Gluroo, PhysioLogic Devices, Portal Insulin, Tidepool. Advisory Panel; Lilly Diabetes. A. Addala: None. A.F. Walker: None.
The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust (G-2005-03934)
