Attitudes towards compulsory vaccination in Italy: Results from the NAVIDAD multicentre study

Abstract Background Vaccine hesitancy is a considerable issue in European countries and leads to low coverage rates. After a long debate, Italy has made vaccination mandatory for admission to its schools. Methods In the NAVIDAD study (a cross-sectional multicentre study), a 63-item questionnaire was administered to 1820 pregnant women from 15 Italian cities. The questionnaire assessed the interviewee's opinion on mandatory vaccines, as well as their socioeconomic status, sources of information about vaccines, confidence in the Italian National Healthcare Service (NHS), and intention to vaccinate their newborn. Results Information sources play a key role in determining the opinion on restoration of mandatory vaccines; in particular, women who obtained information from anti-vaccination movements are less likely to accept the vaccines (OR: 0.35, 95% CI: 0.21–0.58, p  Conclusion Information sources and confidence towards health professionals are the main determinants of acceptance of mandatory vaccine restoration. To increase the acceptability of the restoration and reduce vaccine hesitancy, these aspects need to be strengthened.