Low rates of completion of multidose vaccine series are reported for U.S. children in an analysis of national data. With more than 1 in 6 children initiating but not completing all vaccines, the authors conclude, “Increased focus on strategies to encourage multidose series completion is needed to optimize protection from preventable diseases and achieve vaccination coverage goals.”
Three vaccination patterns were identified in 2019 National Immunization Survey-Child data for U.S. children ages 19 to 35 months: (1) completed the combined 7-vaccine series, (2) did not initiate 1 or more of the 7-vaccine series, or (3) initiated all series, but did not complete 1 or more multidose series. “Among 16,365 children, 72.9% completed the combined 7-vaccine series, 9.9% did not initiate ≥1 series, and 17.2% initiated, but did not complete ≥1 multidose series,” the authors write. “Approximately 8.4% of children needed only 1 additional vaccine dose from 1 of the 5 multidose series to complete the combined 7-vaccine series. The strongest associations with starting but not completing multidose vaccine series were moving across state lines (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR] = 1.45, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.18–1.79), number of children in the household (2 to 3: aPR = 1.29, 95% CI: 1.05–1.58; 4 or more: aPR = 1.68, 95% CI: 1.30–2.18), and lack of insurance coverage (aPR = 2.03, 95% CI: 1.42–2.91).”