There are currently 5.1 million French people over 12 unvaccinated. If the first-time injections boomed on Wednesday, with 66,347 doses administered, millions of people may no longer be able to enter a train, a restaurant or a bar in a few weeks if the vaccination pass is adopted quickly by Parliament, as the government wishes. The latter does not hide the fact that this provision is a “disguised form of vaccine obligation”, according to the words of Olivier Véran. But who are these unvaccinated French people? What is their profile ? 20 minutes takes stock of what we know about them.
What proportion of the population?
According to the latest point from the Directorate General of Health, published Thursday evening, 79% of the total population has received at least one dose of vaccine against Covid-19, and 77% is fully vaccinated. In all, 5.1 million people remain to be vaccinated in the 12-year-old group and over. In detail, 1 million adolescents aged 12 to 17, 900,000 French aged 18 to 34, 1.2 million people aged 35 to 49, 900,000 people aged 50 to 64, 600,000 people aged 65 to 79 and finally 500,000 French over 80 years old.
Which age groups are the least vaccinated?
The vaccination was opened to all children between 5 and 11 years old on December 23, 2021. So far, only 41,000 of them have received a first dose. It is therefore clearly the fringe of the least vaccinated population, with more than 99% of unvaccinated children.
Unsurprisingly, the next group is the teenagers. The vaccination was opened to 12-17 year olds on June 15, 2021. And today, only 18.39% of adolescents are not vaccinated, according to Covidtracker.
Among adults, the 30-49 year olds are the most likely not to be vaccinated: 9.48%.
More surprising – and undoubtedly more embarrassing – the oldest French come next. In fact, 8.35% of those over 75, the most vulnerable to the virus, have not received any injection.
For the last three groups, 18-29 years old, 60-64 years old and 65-75 years old (the best vaccinated), very high vaccination coverage is achieved, with less than 5% of these age groups not vaccinated.
What regions do they live in?
According to data from Covidtracker, it is Corsica which has the palm of the least vaccinated region, with 35% of the inhabitants of Haute-Corse who have not received any doses. Overall, the regions of southern and eastern France achieve lower rates than the Atlantic coast. Because on the other side of France and the curve, it is in Finistère that we are the most vaccinated (83% as of December 26, 2021).
The situation of the French overseas departments and territories is quite specific, the vaccine coverage being much lower. Thus, in Guadeloupe and Martinique, less than 40% of the population has received at least one dose of vaccine. It is 30% in Guyana.
Why are they not vaccinated?
It can be tempting to overlap unvaccinated and antivax. But the reality is more complex, even if no study can give precise figures on the reasons why these people have not yet gone through the injection. While some are addicted to the Covid-19 vaccination, others fear the adverse effects of a vaccine marketed in a short time, have contraindications or would not have had the opportunity to receive an injection.
According to a study revealed by our colleagues from Parisian and carried out by an Inserm researcher, few unvaccinated people today could still change their mind.
According to the third wave of the Slavaco study on vaccination intentions, carried out on 2,022 people between December 2 and 17, and that 20 minutes was able to consult, out of 10.5% of unvaccinated respondents, “a majority seems to have made up their minds on this subject: 7% are” certain “not to be vaccinated, against 3.5% who do not. will “probably not” “, points the press release. “Respondents who still refuse to be vaccinated against Covid are more often women, young people, feeling close to parties of the radical right and the radical left, or not feeling close to any party”, continues the study by Jeremy Ward.
Interesting point: resources and access to care seem to be determining factors in this choice. “Those for whom it is very easy to buy drugs if they need it have voted for this vaccine. More than 95% of them have been vaccinated or intend to do so. This proportion is only 82% among those for whom it is very difficult to buy these drugs. We find similar differences between those for which it is very easy to pay all the bills at the end of the month and those for which it is very difficult (92% vs 79%) ”.
And for a small part of the French, non-vaccination is not so much a choice as a problem of access to the health care system. Especially in very isolated elderly people living far from a vaccination center. “When we know that in Ehpad, there are less than 5% of unvaccinated residents and that those over 70 are largely in favor of vaccination, we can therefore conclude that there are still elderly people living at home, invisible, who are not opposed to vaccination, but for whom we have not taken the step to accompany them “, advance Pascal Champvert, president of theAssociation of Directors at the Service of the Elderly (AD-PA).
People living alone, with disabilities, sometimes without relatives, in rural areas, in medical deserts, without an attending physician, with little help or visits… “It is not a home help that comes for half an hour that will have time to accompany this elderly person to the vaccination center, ”continues Pascal Champvert. If the ministry claims to have put in place initiatives to “go towards”, AD-PA regrets the lack of resources and inventiveness. “We are behind our European neighbors on the vaccination of older people. One year after the opening of the vaccination at over 80 years, it is the proof of the dysfunction of our health system, for lack of means. “
Instead of proposing a toll-free number for information, “That few people know, not even me!” “, It would be necessary” to put in place a system of cooperation between home care services, communal social action centers, which have set up a follow-up in the event of a heat wave, liberal doctors and nurses to achieve this objective that all French people who want it can be vaccinated at home, ”suggests Pascal Champvert.