Awareness is not enough: the need to increase meningococcal vaccine uptake.

Objective: Adolescent meningococcal vaccine uptake remains low. We examined vaccine awareness among parents of adolescents and uptake.
Methods: Parents of adolescents aged 11 to 17 years (n = 1281) participated in a statewide survey. Logistic regression with weighted data provided population-based estimates.
Results: In all, 65% had heard of meningococcal vaccine; parents more likely to report awareness had adolescents aged 16 to 17 years, in private school, or with health insurance. In total, 44% of aware parents reported vaccination; vaccinated teens were more likely to be black (odds ratio [OR] = 2.17), had a preventive checkup within 12 months (OR = 3.03), or resided with another child ≤18 years (OR = 1.83). Many parents of unvaccinated adolescents (38.5%) did not plan to vaccinate them within 12 months. The most common reasons for not vaccinating were providers not recommending it and believing adolescents did not need it.
Conclusion: Many parents aware of meningococcal vaccine did not vaccinate their adolescents. Interventions that include increasing provider recommendation and annual visits may increase uptake.