What is Immunization?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), immunization is a process by which a person becomes protected against a disease through vaccination. This term is often used interchangeably with vaccination or inoculation. Vaccination is the act of introducing a vaccine into the body to produce protection from a specific disease.
What are the Rates of Immunizations among African American Populations?
African American adults are less likely than non-Hispanic white adults to have received a flu vaccine in the past year or to have ever received the pneumonia vaccine.
- In 2018, Non-Hispanic Blacks aged 65 and older were 10 percent less likely to have received the influenza (flu) shot in the past 12 months, as compared to non-Hispanic whites of the same age group.
- African American children aged 19 to 35 months had comparable rates of immunization in 2017.
- African Americans are 10 percent less likely to have received a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine as white populations.
Adults (Hepatitis)
Percentage of adults ages 19-49 years, high risk groups, who received 3 doses of the hepatitis B vaccination, 2018
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black / Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 35.4 | 43.6 | 0.8 |
Source: CDC 2022. Vaccination Coverage among Adults in the United States, National Health Interview Survey, 2018. Box 3, Table 2.
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/ss/ss7003a1.htm
https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/105322
Adults (Influenza)
Age-adjusted percentage of adults age 65 years and older who received the influenza (flu) shot, 2021-2022 season
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black / Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 67.8 | 75.7 | 0.9 |
Source: CDC 2022. Flu Vaccination Coverage, United States, 2021–22 Influenza Season.
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/fluvaxview/coverage-2022estimates.htm
Age-adjusted percentage of adults age 18 and over who received the influenza (flu) shot, 2021-2022 season
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black / Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 42.0 | 53.9 | 0.8 |
Source: CDC 2022. Flu Vaccination Coverage, United States, 2021–22 Influenza Season.
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/fluvaxview/coverage-2022estimates.htm
Adults (Pneumonia)
Age-adjusted percentage of adults age 65 years and older who ever received the pneumococcal vaccine (pneumonia shot), 2018
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 59.8 | 72.6 | 0.8 |
Source: CDC 2022. Vaccination Coverage among Adults in the United States, National Health Interview Survey, 2018; Table 2.
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/ss/ss7003a1.htm
Age-adjusted percentage of high-risk adults age 19 to 64 years who ever received the pneumococcal vaccine (pneumonia shot), 2018
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 25.7 | 23.6 | 1.1 |
Source: CDC 2022. Vaccination Coverage among Adults in the United States, National Health Interview Survey, 2018; Table 2.
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/ss/ss7003a1.htm
Adults (HPV)
Percentage of women ages 19 to 26, who ever received at least 1 dose of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination, 2018
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black / Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 45.2 | 56.5 | 0.8 |
Source: CDC 2022. Vaccination Coverage among Adults in the United States. Estimated proportion of adults aged 19–26years who received at least one dose of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, by age group, sex, and race/ethnicity —National Health Interview Survey, United States, 2018. Suppl. Box 4. https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/105323
Adolescents (Hepatitis)
Percentage of adolescents aged 13 to 17 years who received 3 doses of the hepatitis B vaccination, 2021
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 92.2 | 92.9 | 1.0 |
Adolescents (Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR))
Percentage of adolescents aged 13 to 17 years who received 2 doses of measles, mumps, rubella vaccination, 2021
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 92.1 | 93.5 | 1.0 |
Adolescents (Tdap)
Percentage of adolescents aged 13 to 17 years who received the tetanus-diphtheria booster or Tdap, 2021
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 90.6 | 90.1 | 1.0 |
Adolescents (HPV)
Percentage of adolescents aged 13 to 17 years who ever received the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination, 2021
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 81.7 | 74.4 | 1.1 |
Source: CDC 2022. Vaccination Coverage with Selected Vaccines and Doses Among Adolescents Aged 13–17 Years, National Immunization Survey–Teen, United States, 2021. Suppl Table 1. https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-managers/coverage/teenvaxview/pubs-presentations/nis-teen-vac-coverage-estimates-2021-tables.html
Children (DTaP)
Percentage of children aged 19 to 35 months who received the universally recommended vaccination – 4 doses of diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis (DTaP), 2017
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 79.7 | 83.0 | 1.0 |
Children (Hib)
Percentage of children aged 19 to 35 months who received the universally recommended vaccination – full series Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), 2017
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 77.4 | 81.0 | 1.0 |
Children (Hepatitis B)
Percentage of children aged 19 to 35 months who received the universally recommended vaccination – 3 doses hepatitis B (hep B) vaccine, 2017
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 91.8 | 91.1 | 1.0 |
Children (MMR)
Percentage of children aged 19 to 35 months who received the universally recommended vaccination – 1 dose of measles-mumps-rubella (MMR), 2017
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 89.5 | 91.2 | 1.0 |
Children (Polio)
Percentage of children aged 19 to 35 months who received the universally recommended vaccination – 3 doses of polio, 2017
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 91.5 | 92.3 | 1.0 |
Children (Chicken Pox)
Percentage of children aged 19 to 35 months who received the universally recommended vaccination – 1 dose varicella vaccine (chicken pox), 2017
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 89.3 | 90.3 | 1.0 |
Children (Fully Immunized)
Percentage of children aged 19 to 35 months who are fully immunized, 2017 (4:3:1:3)
| Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 66.5 | 71.5 | 0.9 |
Source: CDC 2018. Vaccination Coverage Among Children Aged 19–35 Months — United States, 2017. Supplementary Table 1.
https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/59414
Last Edited: 09/21/2023