Census Bureau polls show 1 in 5 Utahns will not take the COVID-19 vaccine.

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

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

| January 29, 2021 at 6:40 p.m.

| Updated: 19:36

Despite Herculean efforts to get more COVID-19 vaccines and distribute them as quickly as possible, one in five Utahns who have not yet been vaccinated say they certainly will not or likely not get vaccinated themselves.

Their reasons vary from not trusting the government or believing vaccines are working, worrying about side effects, or wanting to wait and see if they are safe. Some altruistic people say they believe others need vaccines more than they do themselves.

That’s according to a poll conducted by the US Census Bureau from January 6 to 18. It is part of ongoing surveys conducted in each state to measure the health, economic and other effects of the pandemic.
The findings come as officials urged the Utahns to get vaccinated when possible. They say the faster people are vaccinated, the faster the condition can achieve collective immunity and return to normal more quickly. They also said the vaccines were relatively safe and worth any small risk they pose to prevent COVID-19.

In Utah, the survey found that 52.3% of unvaccinated residents said they “definitely” plan to receive the vaccine. Utah ranks 22nd among states in this category, and just above the national average of 50.9%. Another 26% said they would “probably” get a shot.

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

Researchers have estimated that around 75% of the population needs to acquire immunity to the virus – either from vaccines or by surviving the disease – in order to stop transmission and achieve herd immunity. So Utah would be above that level if these results confirmed it.

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

The older the respondents, the more likely they were to want the vaccine. For example, about 73% of Utahns aged 65 and over say they definitely plan to get the vaccine. But only 40% of people between the ages of 18 and 24 do.

The more education a respondent said, the more likely they were to want an injection.

The poll showed that 63% of Utahns who have at least a bachelor’s degree definitely plan to receive one, while only 31% of those who have not completed high school do.

Different breeds have reported a different level of interest in receiving the vaccine. Asians in Utah had the highest percentage of people who said they intended to be vaccinated, 68%. That number was 55% for Hispanics, 54% for whites and only 19% for blacks.

The survey allowed people to list one or more reasons why they were not planning to get the vaccine. Here are some of the main reasons:

• 49% expressed concern about possible side effects.

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

• 35% said other people need it more now.

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

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

• 17% said they did not trust the government.

• 17% said they did not think they needed a vaccine.

• 9% said they didn’t like vaccines.

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

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