Messaging Strategies for COVID-19 Vaccination
(EMPOWeR Trial)
What You Need to Know Before You Apply
What is the purpose of this trial?
COVID-19 vaccination among patients at high risk for severe disease has declined in the United States since 2022. Prior research, including discrete choice experiments (DCEs), has demonstrated that vaccine preferences are influenced by attributes such as effectiveness, safety, convenience, and protection against severe disease. Although DCEs provide valuable insights into stated vaccine preferences and decision-making, they rely on hypothetical scenarios and cannot directly assess how vaccine attributes influence real-world vaccine uptake. Additional research is needed to understand the relationship between vaccine characteristics and observed COVID-19 vaccination behavior in routine clinical practice.
The EMPOWeR study is a pragmatic randomized controlled trial conducted within Kaiser Permanente Southern California (KPSC) to evaluate the effect of immunization messages and reminders that highlight COVID-19 vaccine choices on vaccine uptake. The primary research questions are:
1. Does having a choice in COVID-19 vaccine platform affect vaccine uptake among patients at high-risk of severe disease? 1a. Does having a choice in COVID-19 vaccine platform affect vaccine uptake among patients at high-risk of severe disease, when differences in vaccine platform are highlighted? 1b. Does having a choice in COVID-19 vaccine platform affect vaccine uptake among patients at high-risk of severe disease, when a trusted healthcare professional (HCP) endorses both vaccine options? 1c. Does having a choice in COVID-19 vaccine platform affect vaccine uptake among patients at high-risk of severe disease, when vaccine reactogenicity is highlighted?
A secondary research question is:
2. Does having a choice in COVID-19 vaccine additionally increase uptake of influenza vaccine?
During the 2026-2027 respiratory virus season, eligible KPSC members who are at high-risk of severe COVID-19 will be randomly assigned to receive a standard reminder message or a reminder message with additional information about available COVID-19 vaccine options.
Who Is on the Research Team?
Annette Regan, PhD
Principal Investigator
Kaiser Permanente
Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?
This trial is for Kaiser Permanente Southern California members who are at high risk of severe COVID-19. Participants must be eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and will be contacted during the 2026-2027 respiratory virus season.Inclusion Criteria
Exclusion Criteria
What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?
Interventions
- Vaccine choice + HCP trust-framed message
- Vaccine choice message
- Vaccine choice + platform-framed message
- Vaccine choice + reactogenicity-framed message
Trial Overview
The study tests different reminder messages about COVID-19 vaccines, including options that highlight vaccine choice, trust in healthcare providers, or possible side effects. Patients are randomly assigned to get one of these messages or a standard reminder.
How Is the Trial Designed?
5
Treatment groups
Experimental Treatment
Active Control
Intervention arm tests the effects of choice-framed communication to increase patients' awareness of their available choices of COVID-19 vaccines AND information about expected side effects, compared with usual care.
Intervention arm tests the effects of choice-framed communication to increase patients' awareness of their available choices of COVID-19 vaccines AND emphasizes the support of healthcare personnel (HCP) for both vaccine options, compared with usual care.
Intervention arm tests the effects of choice-framed communication to increase patients' awareness of their available choices of COVID-19 vaccines AND explain differences in vaccine composition and mechanisms of protection by vaccine type, compared with usual care.
Intervention arm tests the effects of choice-framed communication to increase patient's awareness of their available choices of COVID-19 vaccines, compared with usual care.
Standard COVID-19 vaccination reminder message sent as part of usual care.
Find a Clinic Near You
Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?
Kaiser Permanente
Lead Sponsor
Sanofi
Industry Sponsor
Paul Hudson
Sanofi
Chief Executive Officer since 2019
Degree in Economics from Manchester Metropolitan University
Christopher Corsico
Sanofi
Chief Medical Officer
MD from Cornell University, MPH in Chronic Disease Epidemiology from Yale University
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