vaccine hesitancy

noun

plural vaccine hesitancies

: the reluctance or refusal to have oneself or one's children vaccinated

Vaccine hesitancy can contribute to the continued spread of disease because vaccinations are not being administered.

—Fred Steiner

Scientists are expressing concern over what they call "vaccine hesitancy" regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.

—Katie Camero

WHO [World Health Organization] notes that measles cases have increased by 30 percent across the globe, and while not all cases are due to vaccine hesitancies, some countries that had nearly eliminated the disease have seen its return.

—Katie Gillespie

Examples of vaccine hesitancy in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

These cultural identities explain why, for example, research finds that science-skeptical behaviors, such as vaccine hesitancy and climate denialism, tend to cluster in social and geographical pockets. —Anne Toomey, The Conversation, 12 Feb. 2025

As vaccine hesitancy spreads, as states allow for religious or philosophical vaccine exemptions, and as vaccine mandates are removed, more unvaccinated children have become susceptible. —Dr. Eve Meltzer Krief, New York Daily News, 29 Jan. 2025

Worried pediatricians urged Cassidy to block Kennedy from the job, blaming Kennedy for a rise in vaccine hesitancy among parents. —Anne Flaherty, ABC News, 4 Feb. 2025

Adam Ratner: There is no easy answer to this question, and addressing vaccine hesitancy or frank anti-vaccine attitudes has to happen at multiple levels – from individual families, to local communities, to regional or national policy. —Madhukar Pai, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

2002, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

vaccine hesitancy

noun

: the reluctance or refusal to have oneself or one's children vaccinated

Scientists are expressing concern over what they call "vaccine hesitancy" regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.

—Katie Camero, The Miami Herald

Reasons for vaccine hesitancy fit into 3 categories: lack of confidence (in effectiveness, safety, the system, or policy makers), complacency (perceived low risk of acquiring VPDs [vaccine preventable diseases]), and lack of convenience …

—Shixin Shen and Vinita Dubey, Canadian Family Physician

WHO [World Health Organization] notes that measles cases have increased by 30 percent across the globe, and while not all cases are due to vaccine hesitancies, some countries that had nearly eliminated the disease have seen its return.

—Katie Gillespie, The Columbian (Vancouver, Washington)