This study aimed to understand rural–urban differences in the uptake of COVID-19 vaccinations during the peak period of the national vaccination roll-out in Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ). Using a linked national dataset of health service users aged 12+ years and COVID-19 immunization records, age-standardized rates of vaccination uptake were calculated at fortnightly intervals, between June and December 2021, by rurality, ethnicity, and region. Rate ratios were calculated for each rurality category with the most urban areas (U1) used as the reference. Overall, rural vaccination rates lagged behind urban rates, despite early rapid rural uptake. By December 2021, a rural–urban gradient developed, with age-standardized coverage for R3 areas (most rural) at 77%, R2 81%, R1 83%, U2 85%, and U1 (most urban) 89%. Age-based assessments illustrate the rural–urban vaccination uptake gap was widest for those aged 12–44 years, with older people (65+) having broadly consistent levels of uptake regardless of rurality. Variations from national trends are observable by ethnicity. Early in the roll-out, Indigenous Māori residing in R3 areas had a higher uptake than Māori in U1, and Pacific peoples in R1 had a higher uptake than those in U1. The extent of differences in rural–urban vaccine uptake also varied by region.

本研究旨在了解新西兰 (NZ) 在全国疫苗接种推广高峰期城乡之间接受 COVID-19 疫苗接种的差异。使用 12 岁以上卫生服务用户的链接国家数据集和 COVID-19 免疫记录，在 2021 年 6 月至 12 月期间每两周计算一次年龄标准化疫苗接种率，按农村、种族和地区划分。以大多数城市地区 (U1) 作为参考，计算每个农村类别的比率。总体而言，尽管农村地区疫苗接种率早期迅速上升，但农村疫苗接种率仍落后于城市疫苗接种率。到 2021 年 12 月，城乡梯度已形成，R3 地区（大部分农村）的年龄标准化覆盖率为 77%，R2 81%，R1 83%，U2 85%，U1（大部分城市）89%。基于年龄的评估表明，12-44 岁人群的城乡疫苗接种率差距最大，无论农村地区如何，老年人（65 岁以上）的疫苗接种率大致一致。不同种族之间可以观察到与国家趋势的差异。在推出初期，居住在 R3 地区的土著毛利人的使用率高于 U1 中的毛利人，而 R1 中的太平洋岛民的使用率高于 U1 中的毛利人。城乡疫苗接种率的差异程度也因地区而异。