Key Points

• Vaccination coverage rates for the hexavalent, pneumococcal, measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines are very high in Saint Barthélemy, exceeding the national target of 95%. They are relatively high in Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Saint Martin, although depending on the vaccine type, a gap of 10 to 20 percentage points keeps them from reaching the 95% target that ensures good herd immunity.

• The same is true for vaccination coverage for the meningococcal C vaccine, which has certainly increased over the years—despite a slowdown in recent years in Guadeloupe and Martinique—but still falls short of the 95% target in all four territories.

• Vaccination coverage for the meningococcal B vaccine, recommended since 2022, has already reached a quarter of the target population in Guadeloupe and Martinique, indicating rapid uptake of the vaccine among the population. This coverage is nevertheless half that of France as a whole, where it has already reached half of its target.

• Influenza vaccination remains extremely low, as barely 10% of at-risk individuals under 65 received the vaccine during the last season.

• Finally, HPV vaccination—recommended for girls for the past 15 years—remains low, as only one in 10 16-year-old girls has received the full two-dose vaccine regimen in Martinique and one in five in Guadeloupe. Uptake of this HPV vaccine, despite its proven effectiveness in preventing cervical cancer, remains modest in the French Antilles. This finding, which has been confirmed over time, is the basis for studies currently underway in Guadeloupe and Martinique to identify the barriers and drivers of HPV vaccination in the French Antilles. These results will help prepare the next HPV vaccination campaign and advance the vaccination recently (2021) recommended for boys.