Socioeconomic disparities in influenza vaccination uptake: impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea.

Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 100968562 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1471-2458 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 14712458 NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMC Public Health Subsets: MEDLINE

Original Publication: London : BioMed Central, [2001-

COVID-19*/prevention & control ; COVID-19*/epidemiology ; Influenza Vaccines*/administration & dosage ; Influenza, Human*/prevention & control ; Influenza, Human*/epidemiology ; Socioeconomic Factors*; Humans ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Female ; Male ; Adult ; Middle Aged ; Healthcare Disparities/statistics & numerical data ; Aged ; Sociodemographic Factors ; Young Adult ; Pandemics ; Nutrition Surveys ; Vaccination/statistics & numerical data ; Vaccination Coverage/statistics & numerical data ; Socioeconomic Disparities in Health

Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: This study was approved by the institutional review board of Seoul National University Hospital (IRB no. E-2311-008-1480) and utilized national survey data for which all participants provided written informed consent. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
Background: This study aimed to investigate the sociodemographic and behavioral factors related to increased influenza vaccination uptake during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea, particularly among adults not eligible for free vaccination.
Methods: Analyzing data from 78,815 participants in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2010-2021), we assessed trends in influenza vaccination coverage. Various sociodemographic factors, behavioral aspects, and psychological stress levels were assessed using multivariable logistic regression to evaluate the difference in vaccination response during pre-/post-COVID-19 periods.
Results: Lowest income quartile households exhibited decreased influenza vaccination uptake during the pandemic (adjusted odds ratio 0.67, p = 0.011), whereas higher income quartiles exhibited increased uptake. In the lowest income households, unemployed status of household was additionally associated with decreased influenza vaccine uptake (adjusted odds ratio 0.50, p = 0.003).
Conclusions: This study identified income-based disparities in the responsive increase of influenza vaccination during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lower-income households exhibited a disproportionate reduction in influenza vaccine uptake, emphasizing the need for targeted support systems and expanded free vaccination for prioritized groups to address these disparities.
(© 2024. The Author(s).)

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Keywords: COVID-19; Health Policy; Influenza vaccines; Socioeconomic disparities in Health; Vaccination hesitancy

0 (Influenza Vaccines)

Date Created: 20250106 Date Completed: 20250107 Latest Revision: 20250206

20250206

PMC11702076

10.1186/s12889-024-21254-6

39762824