Survey Finds Majority of Israeli Parents Would Vaccinate Children Ages 5-11

A majority of Israeli parents would agree to get their children between the ages of 5-11 vaccinated against the coronavirus if the US Federal Drug Administration approves the vaccine for this age group, a new survey has found.  Fifty-seven percent of parents said they would vaccinate their children this winter if a vaccine is approved and available.

The survey was carried out between September 23 and October 3 by Dr. Liora Shmueli, of the Program for Public Health and Health Systems Management at Bar-Ilan University’s Department of Management. Sarid Research Institute for Research Services assisted in conducting an online survey; some 894 parents over the age of 18 participated in the survey.

Dr. Liora Shmuel

More men, 65%, than women, 51%, favored giving their children the vaccine; and more parents over the age of 40, 64%, than under 40, 50% did as well. In addition, 60% of parents with an academic degree, compared with 53% of parents with a non-academic degree also said they would give their children the vaccine. Meanwhile, 68% of parents whose children received a flu vaccine were more willing than those of children who did not receive the flu vaccine, at 48%, to get their children a coronavirus vaccine.

Significantly, parents who received the coronavirus vaccine themselves, 61%, said they were ready to vaccine their children, compared to parents who had not been vaccinated, at 6%.

No significant differences were discovered between religious denominations, according to marital status, or according to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics’ Peripherality Index, which measures gaps between Israel’s center and peripheries, regarding the intention to vaccinate.

Sixty-six percent of the respondents who said they would not vaccinate their children immediately or at all if the vaccine is offered to them expressed concern about vaccine safety;, 61% reported fear of severe vaccine side effects; and 57% expressed fear that clinical trials and the approval process were carried out too quickly for political reasons.

Incentives that could increase parents’ readiness to vaccinate their children, include a “green” passport to facilitate travel, at 60%; and providing the vaccine within the education system, at 50%. Financial incentives would not increase such readiness for the majority of parents, according to the survey.