Vaccine Attitudes and COVID-19 Vaccine Intentions and Prevention Behaviors among Young People At-Risk for and Living with HIV in Los Angeles and New Orleans
Dallas Swendeman,
Peter Norwood,
Jessica Saleska,
Katherine Lewis,
Wilson Ramos,
Nicholas SantaBarbara,
Stephanie Sumstine,
Warren Scott Comulada,
Sergio Jimenez,
Manuel A. Ocasio,
Elizabeth M. Arnold,
Karin Nielsen-Saines,
Maria Isabel Fernandez,
Mary Jane Rotheram-Borus,
on behalf of the Adolescent HIV Medicine Trials Network (ATN) CARES Team
Affiliations
Dallas Swendeman
Center for Community Health, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Peter Norwood
Center for Community Health, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Jessica Saleska
Center for Community Health, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Katherine Lewis
Center for Community Health, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Wilson Ramos
Center for Community Health, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Nicholas SantaBarbara
School of Health Sciences, Merrimack College, North Andover, MA 01845, USA
Stephanie Sumstine
Center for Community Health, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Warren Scott Comulada
Center for Community Health, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Sergio Jimenez
Center for Community Health, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Manuel A. Ocasio
Section of Adolescent Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
Elizabeth M. Arnold
Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
Karin Nielsen-Saines
Department of Pediatrics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
Maria Isabel Fernandez
Department of Public Health, College of Osteopathic Medicine, Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33328, USA
Mary Jane Rotheram-Borus
Center for Community Health, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
on behalf of the Adolescent HIV Medicine Trials Network (ATN) CARES Team
Sexual and gender minority (SGM) and racial or ethnic minority youth at-risk for or living with HIV may have higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, there are few data on vaccine hesitancy/acceptance and COVID-19 self-protective behaviors among this population. Youth aged 15–24 years (n = 440), predominantly African American and Latine (73%, n = 320) SGM, from Los Angeles and New Orleans reported their vaccine attitudes and COVID-19 and HIV preventive behaviors in October 2020. Latent class analyses categorized individuals into groups based on their vaccine attitudes and preventive behaviors. Relationships between these groups and other factors were analyzed using Fisher’s exact tests, ANOVA, and logistic regression. Most youth had accepting vaccine attitudes (70.2%, n = 309), with 20.7% hesitant (n = 91), and 9.1% resistant (n = 40). SGM and African Americans were significantly less accepting than their cis-gender and heterosexual peers. About two-thirds (63.2%, n = 278) of the respondents reported consistent COVID-19 self-protective behaviors. Youth with pro-vaccine attitudes were most consistently self-protective; however, only 54.4% (n= 168/309) intended to take a COVID-19 vaccine. Homelessness history, race, and sexual orientation were associated with vaccine attitudes. Accepting vaccine attitudes and consistent COVID-19 self-protective behaviors were closely related. COVID-19 attitudes/behaviors were not associated with HIV risk and only loosely associated with SARS-CoV-2 vaccine intentions.
