Human Papillomavirus Vaccination Uptake Before and After the Affordable Care Act: Variation According to Insurance Status, Race, and Education (NHANES 2006-2014)

Study Objective: The purpose of the study was to compare human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates before and after Affordable Care Act (ACA) implementation among women, and examine differences according to insurance status and other sociodemographic variables.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This was a cross-sectional analysis of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey questionnaire data. Participants (n = 4599) were from a random sample of the United States population.

Interventions And Main Outcome Measures: HPV vaccination status and number of doses received according to age, income, education, race, and insurance coverage.

Results: Over time, the proportion of women reporting HPV vaccination increased from 16.4% to 27.6%, and reporting vaccination completion (3 doses) increased from 56.8% to 67.2%. After ACA implementation, respondents were 3.3 times more likely to be vaccinated compared with before ACA implementation (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.0-5.5) adjusting for age, race, and insurance coverage. Similarly, respondents were more likely to have received 2 (odds ratio, 2.8; 95% CI, 1.5-5.3) or 3 doses (odds ratio, 5.8; 95% CI, 2.5-13.6).

Conclusion: Vaccination uptake increased in a comparison of waves of data from before and after ACA implementation. This increase in vaccination coverage could be related to the increased preventative service coverage, which includes vaccines, required by the ACA. Future studies might focus on the role insurance has on vaccination uptake, and meeting Healthy People 2020 objectives for vaccination coverage.