Number of Health Care Personnel Recommending COVID Shots Has ‘Decreased Substantially’ Since 2021: Study

Health care workers who did not take COVID-19 vaccines were ‘far less likely to recommend vaccinating to their patients,’ the study said.

A child receives a dose of the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at the Fairfax County Government Center in Annandale, Va., on Nov. 4, 2021. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

The share of health care personnel recommending COVID-19 jabs and other vaccines to patients has declined significantly in recent years, with overall trust in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) declining, according to a recent study.

The peer-reviewed study, published in the journal NPJ Vaccines on Feb. 28, examined how vaccine attitudes and recommendations changed among health care personnel (HCP) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers conducted a survey in January 2023 and compared the results with an earlier survey from September 2021, finding that health care personnel recommendations for vaccines “decreased substantially for nearly all vaccines and patient populations.”