Effect of Influenza Vaccine Free Policy and What We Can Do to Amplify it: an Investigation among Teachers in Beijing, China, 2024-25
1
China Field Epidemiology Training Program (CFETP), Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine), Beijing, China
2
National Immunization Program (NIP), Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine), Beijing, China
3
Health Standardization, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine), Beijing, China
4
Xiamen Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Xiamen, Fujian, China
5
Infectious and Endemic Disease Control Division, Beijing Shunyi District Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, China
6
Beijing Fengtai District Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, China
7
Chengdu Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Chengdu, Sichuan, China
8
School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
9
Guizhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Guiyang, Guizhou, China
10
National Center for Tuberculosis Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine), Beijing, China
11
Chongqing Municipal Institute of Tuberculosis, Chongqing, China
12
National Institute of Parasitic Disease, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine), Shanghai, China
13
Department of Communicable Diseases Control and Prevention, Shenzhen Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
14
National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine), Beijing, China
15
Office of Epidemiology, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine), Beijing, China
Popul. Med. 2026;8(Supplement Supplement 1):A3921
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION:
Teachers face a comparably high influenza(flu) risk as students, but their vaccination rate (VR) in China is reportedly below 6%. To boost this figure, Beijing government issued the first flu vaccination free policy for teachers on August 26, 2024. This study aimed to assess the impact of the novel policy on teachers' flu VR and identify key determinants to guide evidence-based strategies for raising VR.
METHODS:
We investigated 1154 teachers in 24 primary and middle schools using two-stage stratified cluster sampling from two jurisdictions in Beijing. The school type, boarding status, vaccination in 2023-24 and 2024-25 flu seasons (September 1st to April 30th of next year) and potential influencing factors were collected online from March 27th to April 11th in 2025, with informed consents. School-level VRs for the two seasons were calculated. Given the skewed distribution, the median and quantiles were used for description. The difference in VRs between seasons was examined using a paired Wilcoxon test. We examined influencing factors of vaccination using logistic regression and ranked their contribution to the model fit using likelihood ratio test.
RESULTS:
Analysis of 1,002 valid questionnaires (86.83% of 1,154) revealed no significant difference in the medians of VRs(P=0.1682). The medians for 2024–25 and 2023–24 were 12.83%(Q1-Q3: 0%-25%) and 13.99%(Q1-Q3: 0%-26.29%), respectively. The top-ranked determinants of vaccination were acceptance of slight adverse events(OR=1.73, 95%CI:1.50-2.00; P<0.001), school-based vaccination(OR=2.88, 95%CI:1.27-6.55; P<0.05), teaching grade10-12(OR=2.50, 95%CI:1.52-4.14; P<0.001), unknowing distance to vaccination site(OR=0.36, 95%CI:0.19-0.69; P<0.01) and 15-30 minutes’ distance to vaccination site(OR=0.53, 95%CI:0.32-0.88; P<0.05).
CONCLUSIONS:
Comparing to the significant decline in VR of the Beijing population, the novel free policy may have lessened the reduction in VR of teachers. Further strategies, such as school-based campaigns to boost accessibility and targeted communication regarding adverse events, can yield a positive effect on the free policy.
Teachers face a comparably high influenza(flu) risk as students, but their vaccination rate (VR) in China is reportedly below 6%. To boost this figure, Beijing government issued the first flu vaccination free policy for teachers on August 26, 2024. This study aimed to assess the impact of the novel policy on teachers' flu VR and identify key determinants to guide evidence-based strategies for raising VR.
METHODS:
We investigated 1154 teachers in 24 primary and middle schools using two-stage stratified cluster sampling from two jurisdictions in Beijing. The school type, boarding status, vaccination in 2023-24 and 2024-25 flu seasons (September 1st to April 30th of next year) and potential influencing factors were collected online from March 27th to April 11th in 2025, with informed consents. School-level VRs for the two seasons were calculated. Given the skewed distribution, the median and quantiles were used for description. The difference in VRs between seasons was examined using a paired Wilcoxon test. We examined influencing factors of vaccination using logistic regression and ranked their contribution to the model fit using likelihood ratio test.
RESULTS:
Analysis of 1,002 valid questionnaires (86.83% of 1,154) revealed no significant difference in the medians of VRs(P=0.1682). The medians for 2024–25 and 2023–24 were 12.83%(Q1-Q3: 0%-25%) and 13.99%(Q1-Q3: 0%-26.29%), respectively. The top-ranked determinants of vaccination were acceptance of slight adverse events(OR=1.73, 95%CI:1.50-2.00; P<0.001), school-based vaccination(OR=2.88, 95%CI:1.27-6.55; P<0.05), teaching grade10-12(OR=2.50, 95%CI:1.52-4.14; P<0.001), unknowing distance to vaccination site(OR=0.36, 95%CI:0.19-0.69; P<0.01) and 15-30 minutes’ distance to vaccination site(OR=0.53, 95%CI:0.32-0.88; P<0.05).
CONCLUSIONS:
Comparing to the significant decline in VR of the Beijing population, the novel free policy may have lessened the reduction in VR of teachers. Further strategies, such as school-based campaigns to boost accessibility and targeted communication regarding adverse events, can yield a positive effect on the free policy.
| eISSN: | 2654-1459 |
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