People who inject drugs may be at higher risk of COVID-19 transmission and more severe negative health outcomes following COVID-19 infection. Early research on hypothetical COVID-19 vaccines suggests this population may be less likely to accept vaccination. This commentary extends this research by presenting vaccine intention data from Illicit Drug Reporting System interviews conducted in June–July 2021, in the early stages of vaccine rollout, with people in Australia who inject drugs (N = 888). Half the sample (48%, n = 419) reported that they were hesitant to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, with key barriers relating to vaccine safety and side effect concerns. This level of hesitancy is substantially higher than that of the general population at a similar time. While we note that the subsequent Delta variant-driven third wave of cases in Australia and efforts to increase population vaccination coverage may have altered intent in this group, this level of hesitancy warrants a targeted strategy to mitigate vaccine-related concerns and maximise uptake. Ideally, this should comprise an inclusive health response that is peer-led, with peer-based organisations ideally positioned to direct immunisation service delivery and provide vaccine-related messaging.

中文翻译：

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澳大利亚注射吸毒者对 COVID-19 疫苗的可接受性：2021 年非法药物报告系统访谈更新

注射吸毒者在感染 COVID-19 后可能面临更高的 COVID-19 传播风险和更严重的负面健康后果。对假设性 COVID-19 疫苗的早期研究表明，这一人群可能不太可能接受疫苗接种。本评论扩展了这项研究，展示了 2021 年 6 月至 2021 年 7 月在疫苗推出的早期阶段对澳大利亚注射毒品的人（ N  = 888）进行的非法药物报告系统采访的疫苗意向数据。一半样本（48%，n = 419) 报告说，他们对接受 COVID-19 疫苗犹豫不决，主要障碍与疫苗安全性和副作用问题有关。这种犹豫程度大大高于同期普通人群的犹豫程度。虽然我们注意到澳大利亚随后出现的由 Delta 变异驱动的第三波病例以及增加人口疫苗接种覆盖率的努力可能已经改变了该群体的意图，但这种犹豫程度需要有针对性的策略来减轻与疫苗相关的担忧并最大限度地提高接种率。理想情况下，这应该包括由同行领导的包容性卫生应对措施，基于同行的组织处于指导免疫服务交付和提供疫苗相关信息的理想位置。