Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on timeliness and equity of measles, mumps and rubella vaccinations in North East London: a longitudinal study using electronic health records

ObjectivesTo quantify the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the timeliness of, and geographical and sociodemographic inequalities in, receipt of first measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination. DesignLongitudinal study using primary care electronic health records. Setting285 general practices in North East London. ParticipantsChildren born between 23 August 2017 and 22 September 2018 (pre-pandemic cohort) or between 23 March 2019 and 1 May 2020 (pandemic cohort). Main outcome measureReceipt of timely MMR vaccination between 12 and 18 months of age. MethodsWe used logistic regression to estimate the ORs (95% CIs) of receipt of a timely vaccination adjusting for sex, deprivation, ethnic background and Clinical Commissioning Group. We plotted choropleth maps of the proportion receiving timely vaccinations. ResultsTimely MMR receipt fell by 4.0% (95% CI: 3.4% to 4.6%) from 79.2% (78.8% to 79.6%) to 75.2% (74.7% to 75.7%) in the pre-pandemic (n=33 226; 51.3% boys) and pandemic (n=32 446; 51.4%) cohorts, respectively. After adjustment, timely vaccination was less likely in the pandemic cohort (0.79; 0.76 to 0.82), children from black (0.70; 0.65 to 0.76), mixed/other (0.77; 0.72 to 0.82) or with missing (0.77; 0.74 to 0.81) ethnic background, and more likely in girls (1.07; 1.03 to 1.11) and those from South Asian backgrounds (1.39; 1.30 to 1.48). Children living in the least deprived areas were more likely to receive a timely MMR (2.09; 1.78 to 2.46) but there was no interaction between cohorts and deprivation (Wald statistic: 3.44; p=0.49). The proportion of neighbourhoods where less than 60% of children received timely vaccination increased from 7.5% to 12.7% during the pandemic. ConclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic was associated with a significant fall in timely MMR receipt and increased geographical clustering of measles susceptibility in an area of historically low and inequitable MMR coverage. Immediate action is needed to avert measles outbreaks and support primary care to deliver timely and equitable vaccinations.

Automated summary

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected the timeliness and inequalities in the receipt of MMR vaccination, leading to a decrease in timely vaccination rates and increased geographical clustering of measles susceptibility. Immediate action is needed to prevent measles outbreaks and support primary care in delivering timely and equitable vaccinations.