Agnes Tsai draws up a dose of the Pfizer vaccine during a COVID-19 vaccine clinic at the Oregon State Fairgrounds on Thursday, Jan. 28. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)
The who and why of Covid vaccination in Oregon is split along lines of education, geography and ideology according to a survey conducted by the nonprofit Oregon Values and Beliefs Center.
The online survey conducted from July 9 to July 14 asked 1,464 residents over the age of 18 several questions ranging from their vaccination status to their race to their political ideology. Results were released Wednesday.
Of the respondents, 67% reported receiving at least one dose of the vaccine–slightly lower than statewide data from the Oregon Health Authority that notes 70% of those eligible have been vaccinated.
Vaccination rates, according to the survey, were highest in the Portland metro and Willamette Valley areas at about 77%, as well as among those with at least a four-year degree. According to the survey, 90% of the respondents with a degree reported being vaccinated.
For those who remain unvaccinated, only 18% said they were either “very likely” or “somewhat likely” to get the shot.
The top reasons participants gave for avoiding the vaccine included being worried about long-term side effects (57%), the speed with which the vaccine was created (47%), fears that it wasn’t safe (34%) and concern over short-term effects (33%).
In line with nationwide conversations, political party affiliation divided participant answers as well. According to the survey, Democrats and unaffiliated voters are nearly three times more likely to be vaccinated than Republicans.
People of color were less likely to have been vaccinated and were more likely to be concerned about the vaccine’s side effects than white Oregonians. According to the survey, 67% of unvaccinated people of color were concerned about long-term side effects compared to 57% of white people. Just 28% of unvaccinated people of color listed “the vaccine isn’t safe” as a reason for declining the shot, compared to 35% of unvaccinated white Oregonians.
The full survey is available here.
-Caitlyn May
