Getting enough people vaccinated

Thursday 15 July 2021

The economic issue of vaccines to discuss with your class

Even though the Covid19 vaccines mean people who take them have a very good chance of avoiding a serious illness from the virus some people are still reluctant to be vaccinated.  The US Centre for Infectious Disease Research and Policy claims that 1 in 5 US citizens plan not to get vaccinated.  The reasons why some people choose not to get the Covid19 vaccine ranges from fear of side-effects to the belief that Covid19 is not a serious health risk to various conspiracy theories associated with vaccinations.

The reluctance of a significant proportions of a country’s population to get vaccinated raises important issues for governments and policy makers. Consuming a vaccine brings positive externalities because if a person receives the vaccine for Covid19 they are less likely to get the virus and then less likely to pass it onto others. In addition, vaccinated individuals are less likely to need hospital treatment which means healthcare resources are available to others. At a national level, a high level of vaccination amongst the population means the government is less likely to need to use ‘lock-down’ policies and their associated economic costs.

There might also be a ‘free-rider’ problem associated people getting vaccinated. Some people might feel that the threat from Covid19 will dissipate significantly when enough people have received the vaccine or had the disease – so called ‘herd-immunity’. These people choose not to be vaccinated and ‘free-ride’ on the back of other people’s vaccine consumption.

It is also important to consider how developing countries can cover the cost of vaccination programmes . Many developing countries do not have nearly enough resources to provide sufficient Covid vaccines for their populations.

What do governments do to increase the uptake of vaccines?

Put forward big vaccine education programmes

Encourage the introduction of vaccine passports

Develop a nudge theory approach to vaccination

Make Covid vaccination a legal requirement.