AUTHOR=Wickersham Jeffrey A. , Meyer Jaimie P. , Shenoi Sheela , Altice Frederick L. , Barakat Lydia Aoun , Virata Michael , Olivares Miriam , Maviglia Francesca , Khati Antoine , Shrestha Roman 

TITLE=Willingness to Be Vaccinated Against COVID-19 Among People With HIV in the United States: Results From a National Survey

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Medicine

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2022.886936

DOI=10.3389/fmed.2022.886936

ISSN=2296-858X

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Background</title><p>Approximately 215 million Americans have been fully vaccinated for COVID-19, representing over 65% of the total population. People with HIV (PWH) may be more susceptible to COVID-19 infection or severe disease, elevating the importance of COVID-19 vaccination uptake in the population. We report results from a national survey of PWH to evaluate the likelihood of receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>We conducted an online survey of 1,030 PWH living in the United States between December 6, 2020 and January 8, 2021 to evaluate likelihood of receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>Overall, participants were highly willing to be vaccinated, with 83.8% stating they “strongly agree” (65.7%) or “somewhat agree” (18.1%). Participants' top vaccine-related concerns were side-effects (39.3%), safety (14.7%), and fair/equitable distribution of the vaccine to affected communities (13.6%). Participants were more willing to be vaccinated if they reported receiving an annual influenza vaccination (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001), had previously tested positive for (<italic>p</italic> = 0.043) COVID-19, had been hospitalized for (<italic>p</italic> = 0.027) COVID-19 infection, or had an undetectable HIV viral load (<italic>p</italic> = 0.002). Black (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001), politically conservative (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001), and participants with an annual income of ≤ $19,999 (<italic>p</italic> = 0.005) were significantly less willing to be vaccinated for COVID-19.</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusions</title><p>The vast majority of PWH were willing to be vaccinated, though predominantly those who were already engaged in HIV care or directly affected by COVID-19. Findings from this large survey of PWH suggest intensive outreach efforts are needed to support engagement in vaccination programs, particularly among Black and politically conservative PWH.</p></sec>