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May 28, 2003

U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS

“More Data Before Smallpox Shots Expanded”

Reuters Health Information Services (www.reutershealth.com) (05/27/03)

The Institute of Medicine's Committee on Smallpox Vaccine Implementation has sent a letter to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stating that states should not offer the smallpox vaccine to fire and police personnel until more is known about its safety and side effects. The committee says the federal government should develop educational materials for such volunteers as well as come up with a better definition of what it means for each area to be prepared.  Brian Strom, chairman of the federal advisory panel and a professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, says that the vaccination program has gone well even though it has not met its goal of 500,000 immunizations; but he points out that side effect information has been collected for only about one-third of the civilian volunteers, so there may be unknown side effects.  The panel is to release a longer report next month on the number of people that each area needs to vaccinate to be prepared.