A little over half of U.S. adults plan on getting vaccinated this influenza season, according to data released by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases.
The foundation sponsored a survey conducted by National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago from Aug. 15-18. The survey included 1,002 complete responses from U.S. adults, ages 18 years and older.
Six survey findings:
1. While 60 percent of adults agreed that vaccination is the best preventive measure against the flu, only 52 percent said they plan to get vaccinated this season, and 18 percent said they are not sure.
2. Of those who said they would not get the vaccine, a majority said the reason is they do not think flu vaccines work (51 percent), and many are concerned about side effects from the vaccine (34 percent) or are concerned about getting flu from the vaccine (22 percent.)
3. More than six in 10 indicate that they get information about flu vaccines from healthcare professionals; 55 percent report also getting information from online sources.
4. Seventy percent do not trust social media for information about flu vaccines.
5. Most adults (62 percent) report receiving their last flu vaccine in a healthcare setting.
6. Sixty-three percent said that their employers offering flu vaccinations would not make them more likely to get vaccinated.
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