The role of provider characteristics on the hepatitis A and B vaccination status of adults in the United States during 2007-2015

Hepatitis A and B vaccine coverage is suboptimal in US adults, even among those at increased risk for infection, morbidity, or mortality. To understand where medical education and resources might enhance vaccine coverage, it is important to first identify providers and places most commonly associated with the administration of hepatitis vaccinations. We conducted a retrospective analysis of commercial and Medicare insurance claims data from 2007 to 2015 to describe provider types and places of vaccination against hepatitis A and B among adults in the US, and estimated the time to initial vaccination from first diagnosis of a condition for which the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends hepatitis A and/or B vaccination among at-risk adults. We identified 183,326 adults who received hepatitis A vaccine, 148,119 hepatitis B vaccine, and 64,953 a bivalent vaccine. Mean age was 42.1-45.8 years. Family practice and internal medicine physicians were the main vaccine providers: 38.9% and 20.2% for hepatitis A, 43.7% and 21.4% for hepatitis B, 35.3% and 15.9% for bivalent vaccinations, respectively. ≥90% of initial vaccinations occurred in an office practice. In at-risk patients, median time to first-dose received was 11.8, 20.9, and 20.9 months for hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis A/B vaccines, respectively. Primary care and office practices were the most common providers and places of vaccination, respectively, for hepatitis A and B vaccine. For at-risk patients, further research is needed to design vaccination strategies to improve the median time from first ACIP-recommended condition diagnosis to initial vaccination against hepatitis A and B.