New estimates show unvaccinated adults least likely to wear a mask, engage in risk reduction behaviors
The California Health Interview Survey, led by Dr. Ninez Ponce, has found that unvaccinated adults are the most likely to engage in risky behaviors.
COVID-19 spurred lockdowns and mask mandates more than two years ago. However, data released today from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research’s California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) show Californians were still taking precautions, such as wearing masks and avoiding large gatherings, in April 2022. About 2 in 5 (39%) California adults said they always wore a mask when leaving their home in the past week, 20% said usually, 24% said sometimes, and 16% said they never wore a mask. Unvaccinated adults were less likely to mask up, with more than 1 in 4 (26%) unvaccinated adults saying they never wore a mask, compared to 1 in 7 (14%) fully vaccinated adults.
The latest update to the 2022 CHIS COVID-19 Preliminary Estimates Dashboard, which adds responses from 3,317 Californians in April 2022, builds on previously released data collected in February and March this year. In addition to risk reduction behaviors, topics include Californians’ experiences with long-lasting COVID-19 symptoms, reasons for not receiving the vaccine or booster shots, personal and financial impacts of the pandemic, and COVID-19 news and information sources.
The April 2022 dashboard also features brand new data on vaccination rates among children and teenagers. More than 3 in 4 (77%) children and teenagers were fully vaccinated, according to a sample of 423 teens and children across the state.
by Tiffany Lopes
Faculty Referenced by this Article
Professor of Community Health Sciences & Health Policy and Management, and Associate Dean for Research
Dr. Ron Andersen is the Wasserman Professor Emeritus in the UCLA Departments of Health Policy and Management.
Nationally recognized health services researcher and sociomedical scientist with 25+ years' experience in effectiveness and implementation research.
Dr. Michelle S. Keller is a health services researcher whose research focuses on the use and prescribing of high-risk medications.
EMPH Academic Program Director with expertise in healthcare marketing, finance, and reproductive health policy, teaching in the EMPH, MPH, MHA program
