Featured: Latest KFF Tracking Poll on Health Information and Trust Finds Trust in Doctors for Vaccine Information Remains High, With Partisans Divided on Trust in Other Sources
The latest KFF Tracking Poll on Health Information and Trust finds that individual doctors remain the most trusted sources of reliable vaccine information among the public, while trust in other sources is lower and often characterized by large partisan gaps.
Large majorities of adults and parents say they have at least a “fair amount” of trust in their own doctor (83%) or their child’s pediatrician (81%) to provide reliable information about vaccines. Fewer, but still majorities, trust vaccine information from government health agencies including their local public health department, the CDC, and the FDA, while about half trust pharmaceutical companies and half of parents trust their children’s school or daycare.
While majorities across partisans express trust in their doctor or child’s pediatrician to provide vaccine information, Democrats are more likely than Republicans to trust their doctor (93% v. 78%) or, among parents, their child’s pediatrician (91% v. 73%) as a source of reliable vaccine information. Additionally, larger shares of Democrats compared to Republicans express trust in vaccine information from government health agencies, though this gap has narrowed since the start of President Trump’s second term as trust has declined among Democrats and risen among Republicans. For example, 70% of Democrats and 51% of Republicans now say they trust the CDC for reliable vaccine information, a gap of 19 percentage points. In 2023 under the Biden administration, that gap stood at 48 percentage points (88% of Democrats vs. 40% of Republicans).
Republicans, in turn, are much more likely than independents and Democrats to trust President Trump and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. on vaccines. Three quarters of Republicans say they trust President Trump (74%) and Secretary Kennedy (73%) to provide reliable information about vaccines, making Republicans as likely to trust President Trump and Secretary Kennedy as they are to trust their own doctor on the subject.
The poll also finds that fewer than half the public express “a lot” or “some” confidence in government health agencies to carry out key responsibilities, including ensuring the safety and effectiveness of prescription drugs (46%) or vaccines (45%), responding to outbreaks of infectious diseases (42%), or acting independently without interference from outside interests (32%). Across partisans, half or fewer express at least “some” confidence in these agencies to carry out each of these responsibilities.
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