In Jerusalem, where ultra-Orthodox Jews, secular residents, religious communities and Arabs live alongside one another, getting a flu shot is far more than an individual medical decision. It is also a test of public trust, community leadership and the healthcare system’s ability to reach densely populated neighborhoods. As winter 2027 approaches, health authorities are encouraging vaccination, but research points to a deeper problem: some communities facing increased risks of respiratory disease transmission also report relatively low vaccination uptake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics, only 55.6% of residents aged 65 and older in the Jerusalem District received an influenza vaccine in 2022, the lowest rate among Israel’s districts. This historical figure covers the entire district and should not be confused with the current vaccination rate within Jerusalem itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A 2025 study published in the scientific journal Vaccine examined 369 ultra-Orthodox Jewish parents in Israel. Researchers found that only 19.2% of parents and 15.2% of their children had received influenza vaccinations. The study identified associations between low vaccination uptake and larger families, financial difficulties, limited access to information and beliefs about natural immunity. The sample also revealed a geographical disparity affecting the Jerusalem District. However, these findings cannot be treated as representative of Jerusalem’s entire ultra-Orthodox population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The sociological explanation goes beyond simple vaccine refusal. In some communities, medical decisions are influenced by rabbinical authority, family norms and trust in local leaders. Exposure to misleading information, alongside practical difficulties reaching medical clinics, can also reduce vaccination rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Israel’s Health Ministry, approximately 20%-30% of children contract influenza each year. The disease can cause pneumonia, worsen chronic medical conditions and lead to hospitalization, particularly among older adults, young children, pregnant women and people with underlying health conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although influenza vaccination cannot guarantee protection against infection, it reduces the risk of severe illness and complications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The situation in East Jerusalem also requires careful interpretation. An Israeli study published in 2021 found that, among a sample of mothers with school-aged children, influenza vaccination rates were actually higher among Arab mothers than Jewish mothers, at 61.7% compared with 33.5%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These figures do not represent current vaccination rates among East Jerusalem residents. Nevertheless, they challenge the assumption that minority communities necessarily display greater vaccine hesitancy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Jerusalem, the challenge extends beyond public awareness campaigns. It requires accessible community healthcare, reliable information in appropriate languages and a deeper understanding of each neighborhood’s social structure. Without these elements, even a freely available vaccine may remain out of reach for some of the people who need it most.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In Jerusalem, where ultra-Orthodox Jews, secular residents, religious communities and Arabs live alongside one another, getting a flu shot is far more than an individual medical decision. It is also a test of public trust, community leadership and the healthcare system’s ability to reach densely populated neighborhoods. As winter 2027 approaches, health authorities are encouraging […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":185533,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"10421","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[62,74,8730,68],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-186187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-breaking","category-health","category-8730","category-68"],"acf":{"subtitle":"As winter 2027 approaches, Israel's Health Ministry urges residents to get vaccinated against influenza, while Jerusalem faces a complex challenge: diverse communities, vaccination gaps, institutional mistrust and densely populated neighborhoods"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/186187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/55"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=186187"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/186187\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":186189,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/186187\/revisions\/186189"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/185533"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=186187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=186187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=186187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}