ABSTRACT
COVID-19 vaccinations are an important tool for alleviating the effects of the pandemic. However, many Americans, including many Texans, are hesitant to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. This study examined who, among Texans, is most likely to experience COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and determined the reasons behind COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among Texans. To address our objectives, we used six weeks of repeated cross-sectional data from January 6, 2021, through March 29, 2021, from the United States Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey. An average of 4,145 Texas household responded to the survey each week. We found that 52 percent of Texans who had not yet received a COVID-19 vaccine (as of January - March 2021) reported vaccine hesitancy. Female and black Texans had the highest odds of reporting COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, while Texans of Asian descent, Texans who have college degrees or higher, and Texans 40 years and older had a lower odds of reporting hesitancy. The most common reasons for vaccine hesitancy among Texans were: they plan to wait and see if the vaccine is safe and they may get it later;they are concerned about possible side effects of a COVID-19 vaccine;and they think other people need the vaccine more than they do at the present moment. Efforts to promote COVID-19 vaccination in Texas may benefit from a focus on black, female, and younger (<40 years) Texans. Additionally, to increase COVID-19 vaccination rates, public health messages could address the two most commonly reported reasons for Texans' vaccine hesitancy: (1) I plan to wait and see if it is safe and may get it later, and (2) I am concerned about possible side effects of a COVID-19 vaccine. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Texas Public Health Journal is the property of Texas Public Health Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)