Social criteria are decisive in vaccination. According to a study by the Department of Research, Studies, Evaluation and Statistics (Drees) and Inserm published on Thursday 24 February, the most disadvantaged, the least educated and non-European immigrants are the less vaccinated.
“Being vaccinated strongly depends on the social position of the people questioned (level of education, standard of living or profession)”, specified the authors of the survey, carried out on 85,032 adults from June 24 to August 9. .
In July 2021, in metropolitan France, 72.2% of adults questioned as part of this survey declared that they had been vaccinated (at least one dose).
According to the study, it is the standard of living that appears to be the most discriminating: 55% of adults whose standard of living is below the first decile (the 10% of people with the lowest standard of living) were vaccinated, against 88% of adults whose standard of living is above the last decile (the wealthiest 10%).
Marked differences also according to socio-professional category, with 65% of workers or former workers vaccinated, against 83% of managers or former managers. We still note almost 10 points of difference according to the level of education, with 70% of people without a diploma vaccinated but 79% among holders of a diploma greater than or equal to a bac+5.
A link with trust in government?
Finally, immigrants from a country outside Europe and their descendants are less vaccinated than the adult population as a whole, respectively 53% and 59%.
These inequalities in the use of vaccination are present regardless of age or state of health, notes the DREES.
The authors note that these social disparities “join those observed during previous vaccination campaigns”.
Even if certain populations (the oldest and the least educated) say they needed a third person to make an appointment, the study does not make it possible to “determine whether unvaccinated people would have encountered particular difficulties in access to vaccination (finding a free slot near your home, being able to free yourself up to get vaccinated or even knowing how to make an appointment on the internet or by telephone)”, warned the authors.
Another lesson: people who have no confidence at all in the action of the government to limit the spread of the virus are only 51% to be vaccinated against 85% among those who have complete confidence. The disparities in the use of vaccination according to the degree of trust in the authorities transcend the other socio-economic characteristics.
However, these figures do not make it possible to know whether distrust of the government or scientists is a “direct cause” of the refusal of the vaccine, specify the authors.