COVID-19 vaccination perspectives, infections among first responders

Editor's Note

This study, led by the University of Miami and sponsored by the CDC, finds that unvaccinated first responders (eg, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and others) were more likely to develop COVID-19 and less likely to believe in the effectiveness and safety of vaccines than their vaccinated counterparts.

Of 1,415 participants, 1,163 completed an attitude survey (363 of 586 unvaccinated vs 800 of 829 vaccinated):

• Among the fully vaccinated, 406 (35%) said they trusted the government on COVID-19 vaccines.
• Among the unvaccinated, 45 (12%) said they trusted the government on COVID-19 vaccines.
• Unvaccinated first responders were less likely than their vaccinated counterparts to believe COVID-19 vaccines were effective (61 vs 430).
• Unvaccinated first responders were less likely than their vaccinated counterparts to believe COVID-19 vaccines were safe (54 vs 435).

Of 184 who had confirmed COVID-19 infections:

• Mean duration of illness was lower in vaccinated than unvaccinated (15.3 vs 19.7 days).
• Mean duration of missed work was lower in vaccinated than unvaccinated (67.6 vs 85.2 hours).
• Among law enforcement officers, COVID-19 incidence per 1,000 person weeks was 11.9 in unvaccinated and 0.6 in vaccinated.
• Among firefighters, COVID-19 incidence per 1,000 person weeks was 9.0 in unvaccinated and 1.8 in vaccinated.

None of the differences were statistically significant.

The low trust in government among first responders suggests a need for trusted nongovernmental sources to help increase vaccination rates, the authors say.