Some parents are failing to protect their kids

KFF poll: 1 in 6 parents will delay or skip some childhood vaccines

One quarter of MAGA parents tempt fate and natural selection

Stephanie Soucheray, MA

A new KFF public opinion poll in partnership with the Washington Post finds that 1 and 6 parents are skipping some childhood vaccines, and that proportion jumps to 1 in 4 of self-identified “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) Republican parents. 

Overall, the poll shows confidence in the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) and polio vaccines (90% and 88%, respectively), but much more confusion about seasonal vaccines for COVID-19 and flu. Only 65% of those polled said flu vaccines are safe for children, and 43% said COVID-19 vaccines are safe for children. 

But support for mandatory childhood immunization for some vaccines remained high: 81% of those polled said public schools should require students to get the measles and polio vaccines. 

The poll included 2,716 parents or legal guardians of children under age 18 years in the United States who were asked their opinion on childhood vaccines in July of this year. 

Confidence in agencies is low 

Confidence in federal health agencies was low in this poll, with only 14% of parents saying they have “a lot” of confidence in government health agencies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration. In total half say they have only a little confidence (29%) or none at all (22%).

Twenty-six percent of parents overall say that the CDC recommends too many vaccines.

Younger patients (under 35) and those that homeschool were the most likely to express concern about vaccine safety. Vaccine safety was the most commonly cited reason for skipping childhood vaccines. 

The margin of sampling error for the total sample in the poll is plus or minus 2 percentage points, while it's plus or minus 3 percentage points for the parents of children under the age of 6 years old.