KFF Tracking Poll on Health Information and Trust: COVID-19 Vaccine Update

Read the news release about these poll findings.

Key Findings

• Amid ongoing news from federal agencies about changing COVID-19 vaccine recommendations, the replacement of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory committee members (ACIP), and re-examination of the federal childhood vaccine schedule, there is confusion among the public about U.S. vaccine policy. While half of the public thinks Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made “major” (26%) or “minor” (26%) changes to vaccine policy in the U.S., the other half either say they “don’t know enough to say” (40%) or say no changes have been made (7%). At least three in ten adults across demographic groups and party identification say they don’t know enough about the recent changes from Kennedy to vaccine policy to describe them. In addition, half (48%) of parents are not sure if federal health agencies are currently recommending that healthy children receive a COVID-19 vaccine this fall or not.
• Once told about the changes to U.S. vaccine policy, the public is divided by partisanship in whether they think these changes will make people safer or less safe. About two in ten adults, including 41% of Republicans, think these changes will make people safer while about one-third of adults, including most Democrats (62%) and four in ten independents (41%) say they will make people less safe. Another third of adults (31%) say they “don’t know enough to say” as to whether the recent changes to U.S. vaccine policy will make people safer or not, and about one in ten say the changes won’t make a difference.
• Most of the public (59%) say they will either “definitely not” or “probably not” get the COVID-19 vaccine this fall – including about six in ten Republicans who say they will “definitely not” get the vaccine. Older adults and Democrats are much more likely to report that they will get the COVID-19 vaccine. About four in ten Black adults and Hispanic adults say they plan to get the COVID-19 vaccine as do 37% of White adults.
• With most of the public reporting that they will not get a COVID-19 vaccine this fall, few are worried about the availability of the vaccine or whether it will be covered by insurance. One-third (33%) of adults are concerned that COVID-19 vaccines won’t be available to them this fall, while a third (34%) of insured adults are also worried that their insurance won’t cover a shot. Concern about availability and coverage are tied to vaccine intention, with those who plan to get the vaccine much more likely to be concerned that it might not be available to them (66%), including specific demographic groups who are more likely to get vaccinated such as older adults and Democrats.
• Personal doctors or health care providers remain the most trusted source for information about vaccines among asked sources, with eight in ten (83%) adults who say they trust their own doctor at least “a fair amount.” Smaller shares of the public, but still majorities trust their local public health department and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, to provide information on vaccines, though the share who say so has been steadily in decline since September 2023. Fewer continue to say they trust HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to provide information on vaccines, with about four in ten (37%) saying they trust him at least a fair amount, unchanged since his appointment in April of this year.
• About half of the public have confidence in agencies like the CDC and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ensure the safety and effectiveness of vaccines approved for use in the U.S. (49%), while less than half say they have at least some confidence in the agencies to make decisions based on science rather than the personal views of agency officials (42%), or act independently, without interference from outside interests (37%). Democrats continue to be more confident in federal health agencies than Republicans to ensure the safety and effectiveness of vaccines.

Awareness of Changes to Vaccine Policy

Since his appointment as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made several headlines about changing vaccine recommendations, leaving many confused about the scope of changes to U.S. vaccine policy and unsure of how these changes might affect people.

About half (52%) of the public are aware that RFK Jr. has made changes to U.S. vaccine policy, with about a quarter describing them as “major changes” (26%) or “minor changes” (26%). Four in ten adults say they don’t know enough about the changes to say whether they are “major” or “minor.” In addition, another 7% are unaware that changes have been made.

Whether the public views the changes as “major” or “minor” is largely partisan, with Democrats more likely to say they are “major” changes while Republicans describe them as “minor” changes. About four in ten (39%) Democrats say the changes that have been made to U.S. vaccine policy are “major,” compared to a quarter (25%) of independents and one in six (16%) Republicans. Nearly four in ten Republicans describe the changes as “minor,” compared to a quarter of independents and 18% of Democrats.

Young adults and those without a college degree are more likely to report that they don’知道 enough about the issue to say whether or not the Secretary of HHS has made changes to vaccine policy. About half of those ages 18-29 (47%) and those without a college degree (45%) report that don’t know enough to say about changes to vaccine policy, compared to smaller shares of older adults and those with a college degree or higher.

With RFK, Jr. focusing attention on the childhood vaccine schedule, about half of parents are aware that changes have been made but the other half of parents are either unaware that changes have been made (9%) or report they don’t know enough to say (39%). Similar to all adults, how parents described the scope of the changes is largely partisan with Democratic-leaning parents describing them as major changes, and Republican-leaning parents describing them as minor changes.

In light of the recent changes to policy, a third (36%) of the public say the changes that HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made to vaccine policy will make people less safe while a smaller share (20%) say the changes to vaccine policy will make people safer. Similar to overall awareness of the changes, a substantial share (31%) say they don’t know enough about the recent changes to say whether they will make people safer or less safe. An additional one in ten (13%) say the changes will not make any difference.

Once again, views are largely partisan, including among parents. Pluralities of Democrats and independents say the changes RFK Jr. has made to vaccine policy will make people less safe, including six in ten (62%) Democrats and four in ten (41%) independents. However, Republicans are split, with similar shares who say the policy makes people safer (41%) and that they don’t know enough to say (34%).

Parents are also split, with a third (32%) who don’t know enough to say and three in ten (29%) who say these changes will make people less safe. Another quarter (22%) of parents say it’ll make people safer, while one in six (17%) say it won’t make a difference. Parents who are Democrats or Democratic-leaning independents are more likely to say the changes will make people less safe, while Republican-leaning parents are more likely to say the changes will make people safer.

The Fall 2025 COVID-19 Vaccines

Overall, most of the public (59%) say they will either “definitely not” or “probably not” get the COVID-19 vaccine this fall. KFF has been tracking uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine since early 2021. Older adults and Democrats are much more likely to report that they will get the COVID-19 vaccine, while six in ten Republicans (59%) say they will “definitely not” get the COVID-19 vaccine. Similar shares across race and ethnicity say they plan to get the vaccine this fall, but notably White adults are the most likely to be against getting the vaccine, with four in ten (42%) saying they will “definitely not” get the vaccine.

Views of the changes to U.S. vaccine policy also vary by vaccine intention. Those who say they will “definitely” or “probably” get the shot are more likely to say they think the changes to U.S. vaccine policy are “major changes” and这些变化将使人们更不安全。

Few Are Worried About Availability of Vaccines

With the Trump administration instituting possible changes to vaccine recommendations, including the COVID-19 vaccine, and coverage of vaccines largely tied to recommendations from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practice (ACIP) or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), those who want a COVID-19 vaccine are worried about being able to access the vaccine.

With less than half of adults saying they plan to get a COVID-19 vaccine this fall, just one-third (33%) of all adults are “very” or “somewhat” concerned that COVID-19 vaccines won’t be available to them this fall. Most adults (67%) say they’re “not too” or “not at all” concerned about the availability of the vaccine. Similarly, among those who have insurance, a third (34%) are “very” or “somewhat” concerned that their insurance won’t cover a COVID-19 vaccine this fall, while two-thirds (65%) are “not too” or “not at all” concerned.

Those who plan to get the vaccine are much more likely to be concerned that it might not be available to them. Among those who say they’ll “definitely” or “probably” get a COVID-19 vaccine this fall, two-thirds (66%) are concerned that the vaccine won’t be available to them, while six in ten (62%) of insured adults who will likely get a vaccine this fall are concerned their insurance won’t cover it. Predictably, just about one in ten of those who likely won’t get the vaccine are concerned about availability (11%) or insurance coverage (14%).

Groups that are more likely to say they plan on getting the COVID-19 vaccine are predictably more concerned about both the availability of the vaccine and whether their insurance would pay for it. Over half (56%) of Democrats are concerned about the availability of the COVID-19 vaccine or insurance coverage (53%), compared to under four in ten independents and one in ten Republicans worried about availability or coverage.

In addition, people who are ages 50 and older are more concerned than younger adults that the vaccine won’t be available to them, though majorities still report they are not concerned, with about four in ten of older adults who are concerned about both availability and insurance coverage, compared to about a quarter of those under the age of 50.

Black adults and Hispanic adults are among the most concerned about the availability and insurance coverage of the COVID-19 vaccine, with半数的黑人成年人担心可用性（48%）和保险覆盖范围（46%），以及半数的西班牙裔成年人担心保险覆盖范围（47%），相比之下，担心这两项的白人成年人比例较小。

Half (48%) of parents say they are not sure if federal health agencies are currently recommending that healthy children receive a COVID-19 vaccine this fall. Currently, the CDC is recommending that decisions around the COVID-19 vaccine for healthy children ages 6 months to 17 years should be between the health care provider and the patient or their parents, with no formal recommendation from the CDC. This comes after RFK, Jr. announced that the COVID-19 vaccine is not being recommended for this group.

Two in ten (21%) parents believe the COVID-19 vaccines are being recommended, while three in ten (31%) say COVID-19 vaccines are not being recommended for healthy children this fall. This is similar across partisans, with half of parents regardless of party identification saying they don’t know enough to say, and about three in ten Republican and Republican-leaning independent parents (31%) and Democratic and Democratic-leaning independent parents (35%) aware that the CDC is not recommending the COVID-19 vaccine for healthy children this fall.

Trust in Sources to Provide Vaccine Information

Personal doctors or health care providers remain the most trusted source for information about vaccines, with eight in ten (83%) adults saying they trust their doctor “a great deal” or “a fair amount” to provide reliable information about vaccines. Smaller shares of the public, but still majorities, trust their local public health department (62%) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC (57%), to provide information on vaccines. Four in ten trust their state government officials (43%). HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to be the least trusted source of information on vaccines with just over one-third of adults (37%) saying they trust him at least a fair amount.

Individuals’ doctors or health care providers also garner the highest shares of trust across partisans, with at least eight in ten Democrats (92%), independents (85%), and Republicans (80%) who trust them “a great deal” or “a fair amount” to provide vaccine information. Notably, Republicans’ next trusted source behind their own personal doctor is RFK Jr., with seven in ten Republicans saying they trust him to provide reliable information on vaccines, compared to three in ten independents and one in ten (11%) Democrats.

Democrats are more trusting of vaccine information from health agencies than independents or Republicans, with three-quarters (77%) of Democrats saying they trust their local public health department to provide reliable information on vaccines, compared to two-thirds (63%) of independents, and half (53%) of Republicans. Similarly, another seven in ten (72%) Democrats trust the CDC compared to six in ten (61%）独立人士和不到一半（44%）的共和党人。这些党派在信任度上的分歧与之前的KFF民意调查结果一致。

支持MAGA运动的共和党人或共和党倾向的独立人士始终比非MAGA共和党人和倾向者较少信任疫苗信息来源，显著减少的人表示他们信任当地公共卫生部门、CDC和州政府官员。类似比例的人表示他们“非常”或“相当”信任他们的个人医生，但更大比例的MAGA共和党人信任RFK Jr.提供疫苗信息（77% vs. 48%的非MAGA共和党人）。

最新的民意调查显示，自2023年9月首次提出以来，公众对政府机构如CDC或当地公共卫生部门提供可靠疫苗信息的总体信任度持续下降。表示信任CDC或当地公共卫生部门的成年人比例下降了6个百分点，而信任自己提供者的比例保持相对稳定。

尽管公众多数表示信任CDC等政府卫生机构提供疫苗信息，但很少有人对这些机构履行其许多职责（包括确保美国批准使用的疫苗的安全性和有效性（49%）根据科学而非机构官员的个人观点做出决定（42%）或独立行动而不受外界利益干扰（37%））有信心。不到五分之一的成年人对这些机构履行每项任务的“很大”信心。

尽管特朗普政府任命了这些联邦卫生机构的领导人，但民主党人比共和党人更相信政府卫生机构能够确保美国批准使用的疫苗的安全性和有效性。约六成（58%）的民主党人表示对这些机构确保疫苗安全性和有效性有信心，相比之下，不到一半（45%）的共和党人同意。

民主党人（41%）、独立人士（42%）和共和党人（46%）对政府根据科学而非机构官员的个人观点做出决定的信心相似，而民主党人（41%）和共和党人（41%）对联邦卫生机构独立行动而不受外界利益干扰的信心相似。独立人士中，约三分之一（32%）的人表示对机构独立行动的能力有信心。