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Vaccine hesitancy is one of the top ten health threats. We aimed to (1) assess parental Category B vaccines hesitancy and associated sociodemographic factors in China, and (2) explore the association between attitude toward vaccines and self-reported hesitant behavior. A cross-sectional study was performed through a web-based anonymous online questionnaire survey between 9 February and 7 April 2021. Chinese parents aged ≥ 18 years with one child aged < 6 years were included to assess vaccine hesitancy using the vaccine-hesitancy scale (VHS). Structural equation model was used to determine relationships between variables. Of 2952 Chinese parents included in the analysis, 17.5% were highly hesitant in Category B vaccines. Parents who were younger, less educated, engaged in health-related occupations, and had been vaccinated against influenza in the past year were more hesitant when vaccinating their children (P < 0.001). VHS score accuracy to identify vaccine-hesitant behavior was acceptable, and the optimal cutoff was 37.50 (with 61.96% parental vaccine hesitancy). Parents who lack confidence or believe vaccines were risk were more likely to show vaccine hesitant behavior (P < 0.001). In China, effective interventions need to be implemented to eliminate parental Category B vaccines hesitancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to examine childhood vaccination delay, explore the association between vaccination delay and parental vaccine hesitancy, and assess childhood vaccination delays during the coronavirus disease (COVID)-19 pandemic in China. This cross-sectional survey was conducted in Wuxi City. Participants were recruited from local vaccination clinics. Questionnaires were used to collect information about socio-demographics, vaccine hesitancy, and immunization clinic evaluations. Vaccination records were obtained from the Jiangsu Information Management System of Vaccination Cases. Overall, 2728 participants were included. The coverage for seven category A vaccines (Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI)) was more than 95% at 24 months. The proportion of children vaccinated in a timely manner was the highest for the first dose of the hepatitis B vaccine (91.6%) and the lowest for the Bacillus-Calmette-Guerin vaccine (44.6%). More than 50% of the planned vaccinations were delayed in February and March 2020. The Vaccine Hesitancy Scale scores were not associated with vaccination delay (P = 0.842). Children's vaccination delays were negatively associated with parents who reported convenient access to clinics and satisfaction with immunization services (P = 0.020, P = 0.045). EPI is highly successful in China. Despite vaccination delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, coverage was recovered after lockdown restrictions were eased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]