Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Public Health and Surveillance
Date Submitted: Apr 25, 2023
Date Accepted: Dec 15, 2023
Ethnic disparities in COVID-19 vaccine mistrust and receipt in British Columbia, Canada: Population Survey
ABSTRACT
Background:
Racialized populations in the United States, Canada and UK have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19. Higher vaccine hesitancy has been reported among racial/ethnic minorities in some of these countries. In the UK for example, higher vaccine hesitancy has been observed among the South Asian population and Black compared to the White population and this has been attributed to lack of trust in government due to historical and ongoing racism and discrimination.
Objective:
To assess vaccine receipt by ethnicity and its relationship with mistrust among ethnic groups in British Columbia (BC), Canada.
Methods:
We included adults ≥18 years of age participating in the BC COVID-19 Population Mixing Patterns Survey (BC-Mix) from March 8, 2021, to August 8, 2022. The survey included questions about vaccine receipt and beliefs based on a behavioral framework. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the association between mistrust in vaccines and vaccine receipt among ethnic groups.
Results:
The analysis included 25,640 adults. Overall, 76.7% of respondents reported having received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccines (Chinese=86.1%, South Asian=79.6%, White=75.5%, Other ethnicity=73.2%). Overall, 13.7% of respondents reported mistrust of COVID-19 vaccines (Chinese=7.1%,South Asian=8.2%, White=15.4%, Other ethnicity=15.2%). In the multivariable model (adjusting for age, sex, educational attainment, and household size), mistrust was associated with a 93% reduced odds of vaccine receipt (aORs=0.07, 95% CI: 0.06, 0.08). In the models stratified by ethnicity, mistrust was associated with 81.0%, 92.0%, 94.0% and 95.0% reduced odds of vaccine receipt among South Asian, Chinese, White, and other ethnicities respectively.
Conclusions:
Overall vaccine receipt among those who identified as South Asian and Chinese in BC was higher than the White population and these population groups had lower mistrust in vaccines. Vaccine mistrust was associated with a lower odds of vaccine receipt in all ethnicities, but the magnitude of this association was less pronounced among South Asian and Chinese populations.
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