Vaccination coverage among foreign-born and U.S.-born adolescents in the United States: Successes and gaps – National Immunization Survey-Teen, 2012–2014

• Published in: Vaccine 2018-03, Vol.36 (13), p.1743-1750
• Main Authors: Healy, Jessica, Rodriguez-Lainz, Alfonso, Elam-Evans, Laurie D., Hill, Holly A., Reagan-Steiner, Sarah, Yankey, David
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescents; Adults; Children; Communicable Disease Control - methods; Communicable Disease Control - statistics & numerical data; Demographics; Diphtheria; Economic factors; Female; Foreign-born; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Health Surveys; Hepatitis B; History, 21st Century; Human papillomavirus; Humans; Immunization; Immunization Programs - statistics & numerical data; Male; Measles; Mumps; Pertussis; Polls & surveys; Poverty; Prevalence; Public health; Public Health Surveillance - methods; Rubella; Social factors; Socioeconomic Factors; Socioeconomics; Teen; Teenagers; Tetanus; Toxoids; United States - epidemiology; Vaccination; Vaccination - history; Vaccination - statistics & numerical data; Vaccination Coverage - history; Vaccination Coverage - statistics & numerical data; Vaccines; Varicella
• ISSN: 0264-410X; 1873-2518
• DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2018.02.052

•Vaccination coverage among foreign-born and U.S.-born adolescents was comparable for four of six vaccines.•Although hepatitis B (HepB) vaccine coverage was ∼90%, it was lower among foreign-born adolescents.•Adjustment for socio-demographic factors did not explain the disparity in HepB vaccination coverage.•Coverage for ≥3 doses of human papillomavirus vaccine and ≥2 doses of varicella vaccine was low among both groups. An overall increase has been reported in vaccination rates among adolescents during the past decade. Studies of vaccination coverage have shown disparities when comparing foreign-born and U.S.-born populations among children and adults; however, limited information is available concerning potential disparities in adolescents. The National Immunization Survey-Teen is a random-digit–dialed telephone survey of caregivers of adolescents aged 13–17 years, followed by a mail survey to vaccination providers that is used to estimate vaccination coverage among the U.S. population of adolescents. Using the National Immunization Survey-Teen data, we assessed vaccination coverage during 2012–2014 among adolescents for routinely recommended vaccines for this age group (≥1 dose tetanus and diphtheria toxoids and acellular pertussis [Tdap] vaccine, ≥1 dose quadrivalent meningococcal conjugate [MenACWY] vaccine, ≥3 doses human papillomavirus [HPV] vaccine) and for routine childhood vaccination catch-up doses (≥2 doses measles, mumps, and rubella [MMR] vaccine, ≥2 doses varicella vaccine, and ≥3 doses hepatitis B [HepB] vaccine). Vaccination coverage prevalence and vaccination prevalence ratios were estimated. Of the 58,090 respondents included, 3.3% were foreign-born adolescents. Significant differences were observed between foreign-born and U.S.-born adolescents for insurance status, income-to-poverty ratio, education, interview language, and household size. Foreign-born adolescents had significantly lower unadjusted vaccination coverage for HepB (89% vs. 93%), and higher coverage for the recommended ≥3 doses of HPV vaccine among males, compared with U.S.-born adolescents (22% vs. 14%). Adjustment for demographic and socioeconomic factors accounted for the disparity in HPV but not HepB vaccination coverage. We report comparable unadjusted vaccination coverage among foreign-born and U.S.-born adolescents for Tdap, MenACWY, MMR, ≥2 varicella. Although coverage was high for HepB vaccine, it was significantly lower among foreign-born adolescents, compared wit