Disparities in uptake of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine among older adults in the United States

Abstract

Background : In September 2014, 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) was universally recommended for all US adults aged ≥65 years. Adult PCV13 coverage, including whether disparities in uptake exist, however, is not well-described. Methods : We used a monthly series of cross-sectional analyses of administrative medical and prescription claims data collected by IQVIA and linked to sociodemographic data collected by Experian to estimate overall and subpopulation-level uptake of PCV13 among US adults aged ≥65 years. Results : Among adults aged ≥65 years, 43.3% received PCV13 by the end of November 2017. Race/ethnicity, annual household income, education status, and neighborhood urbanicity were strongly related to PCV13 uptake among adults aged ≥65 years. Lower uptake of PCV13 was observed for non-Hispanic black (36.3%) and Hispanic (30.0%) adults ( vs 45.6% for non-Hispanic whites, P < .01), the poor (30.7% vs 54.2% among lowest vs highest income deciles, P < .01), adults with low educational status (33.0% vs 49.0% among those without high school education vs college educated, P < .01), and those living in rural communities (22.9%) or urban/inner-city (33.8%) areas ( vs 45.8% in suburban areas, P < .01). Conclusions : PCV13 uptake among adults aged ≥65 occurred rapidly in the three years after universal recommendation in September 2014. Yet, poor and minority communities, rural and urban/inner-city areas, and communities with low educational attainment had substantially lower PCV13 coverage. These same populations are at increased risk of pneumococcal disease. In order to maximize the benefits of pneumococcal vaccination, further targeted and tailored interventions to increase PCV13 uptake in these underserved populations are still necessary.

Influenza and Pneumococcal Vaccination in Non-Infected Cardiometabolic Patients from the Americas during the COVID-19 Pandemic. A Sub-Analysis of the CorCOVID-LATAM Study

“…Knowledge, information in mass media, access to consultation and prescriptions, should be reviewed as barriers in achieving greater vaccination rates in this vulnerable cohort. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this inequity in access to healthcare was more visible, according to several studies [ 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 ]. Even more, global gross domestic product shrinkage of 3.2% in 2020 was predicted by the United Nations, and that will push 34 million more people into extreme poverty [ 62 ] with a potentially worse scenario for IV and PV rates for the next years if proper measures are not taken by stakeholders.…”

Age and Location in Severity of COVID‐19 Pathology: Do Lactoferrin and Pneumococcal Vaccination Explain Low Infant Mortality and Regional Differences?

“…[ 100,101 ] Pneumococcal vaccination rates among adults over 65 varied from 18% to 91% both within neighborhoods in individual cities such as Chicago [ 102 ] and nationally as a function of the same factors. [ 103 ] Geographical locations with the lowest vaccination rates invariably have the highest rates of COVID‐19 cases.…”

The Acceptance of Key Public Health Interventions by the Polish Population Is Related to Health Literacy, But Not eHealth Literacy

“…Higher acceptance was found among women than men and by those aged at least 65 years old. Another study performed in the USA, limited to the population of adults aged 65 or above, revealed that the uptake of the pneumococcal vaccine was lower among: those of black and Hispanic ethnicity, than among non-Hispanic whites; by the poor rather than those with the highest income; among those with a low level of education than among those with at least college education and finally among those living in rural communities or urban inner-city areas, rather than those living in suburban areas [34].…”