Census Bureau polls show 1 out of 5 Utahns will not use a COVID-19 vaccine.

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About 1 in 5 Utahns who have not received the COVID-19 vaccine say they may not be getting one.

(Rick Egan | Tribune file photo) Kenley Hansen receives a COVID-19 vaccination from Kirsten Weber as residents of Utah County lined up for vaccinations at a former Shopko store in Spanish Fork on Wednesday, January 27, 2021.

| January 29, 2021, 6:40 PM

| Updated: 7:36 PM

Despite tremendous efforts to obtain more COVID-19 vaccines and distribute them as quickly as possible, one in five Utahns who have yet to be vaccinated say they are definitely or likely not to receive an injection themselves.

Their reasons range from not trusting the government to not believing vaccines to be effective, to worrying about side effects, to wanting to wait to see if it’s safe. Some altruistic people say they believe others need the vaccines more than they do.

That’s according to polls conducted by the US Census Bureau Jan 6-18. It is part of ongoing studies being conducted in each state to measure the health, economic and other impacts of the pandemic.
The findings come because officials have urged Utahns to get vaccinated if possible. They say the sooner people are vaccinated, the sooner the state can achieve herd immunity and return to normal. They have also said the vaccines are relatively safe and worth any small risk they pose to avoid COVID-19.

In Utah, the survey found that 52.3% of residents still to be vaccinated said they “definitely” plan to receive the vaccine. Utah ranked 22nd among the states in that category and slightly above the national average of 50.9%. Another 26% said they “probably” will get a chance.

However, 8% said they “definitely” won’t. Another 13% said they “probably” won’t. So overall, 21% of Utahns who have yet to be vaccinated say they are likely or sure to skip the shots.

Researchers estimate that about 75% of the population must acquire immunity to the virus – either through vaccines or by surviving the disease – to halt transmission and achieve herd immunity. So Utah would be above that level if these results are confirmed.

Some groups reported in the survey that they are more likely than others to avoid the vaccine.

The older the respondents were, the more likely they were to want the vaccine. For example, about 73% of people over 65 in Utah say they definitely intend to take a chance. But only 40% of those between the ages of 18 and 24 do.

The more education a respondent indicated, the more likely they were to want an opportunity.

The poll found that 63% of Utahns who have at least a bachelor’s degree definitely plan to pursue one, while only 31% of those with less than a high school education do.

Different races reported different levels of interest in receiving the vaccine. Asians in Utah had the highest percentage of people who said they were definitely planning to get the vaccine, 68%. That number was 55% for Hispanics, 54% for whites, and only 19% for blacks.

The poll allowed people to name one or more reasons why they didn’t plan on getting a vaccine. Some of the main reasons were:

• 49% said they were concerned about possible side effects.

• 48% said they plan to wait to see if it is safe.

• 35% said other people need it more now.

• 19% said they do not trust COVID-19 vaccines.

• 19% said they do not know if a vaccine will work.

• 17% said they do not trust the government.

• 17% said they do not believe they need a vaccine.

• 9% said they don’t like vaccines.

The survey interviewed 2,085 Utah residents. The Census Bureau said the results for the entire group are considered accurate with a margin of error of 3 percentage points, plus or minus. Subsets, such as age, race, and education, have higher margins of error and vary.

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