Nation's Largest Health Care Union Warns That, Without Better Safeguards,
Plan Itself Poses Public Health Risks
As Bush Administration Prepares to Vaccinate
500,000 Health Workers for Smallpox ...
Pregnant Women, Cancer Patients, People Who Are HIV Positive,
And Victims of Certain Skin Conditions Could Be at Particular Risk
Without Changes in Plan
'If there is a smallpox threat, the nation needs a plan that doesn't make
the risk worse. The administration's plan could have dangerous effects
on public health and the safety of our nation's hospitals. President
Bush and Congress have taken steps to protect the drug companies that
produce the vaccine from liability, but they have not done enough to
protect and care for health care workers, their families, and patients
whose health the vaccine could affect.'
-- Andrew L. Stern, SEIU President
WASHINGTON, Dec. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- As President Bush prepares to ask a
half million health care workers to volunteer for smallpox vaccinations, the
nation's largest union of health care workers has issued a strong warning that
without better protections, the proposed plan could put hospital patients,
caregivers, and the public at risk.
Last month, Congress passed legislation that will allow drug companies to
avoid liability for producing the smallpox vaccine and prevent those
administering it from being sued. But neither the legislation nor the plan
President Bush is considering provides adequate protection for people who get
sick as a result of receiving the vaccine or coming into contact with those
who have been vaccinated.
"Health care workers want to be ready to respond in a safe way if a
smallpox outbreak occurs," said Diane Sosne, RN, National Co-Chair of the SEIU
Nurse Alliance. "President Bush must put better safeguards in place before
anyone is asked to volunteer for the smallpox vaccine."
According to recent news reports, the White House is about to announce
vaccinations for 500,000 hospital workers nationwide, followed by millions of
firefighters, police, and other health and rescue personnel who would be first
to respond in the event of an outbreak.
SEIU leaders will be meeting with federal, state, and local officials --
including Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson -- and working
together with hospital management to urge them to enact a vaccine plan that
will limit adverse effects and protect workers, patients, and the public.
For details on health care workers' concerns, see the following sheet.
Will the Bush Smallpox Plan Make the Risks Worse?
The smallpox vaccine is "probably the least safe human vaccine" today,
says Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Diseases. The U.S. government stopped mandatory smallpox
vaccinations in 1972 because the rate of adverse effects, including death, was
too high since there had not been a smallpox outbreak in this country since
1949. Today, Fauci estimates 30-50 million people have health conditions that
put them at risk for side effects from the vaccine, a far greater number than
30 years ago.
SEIU health care workers' concerns include the following:
* America's smallpox vaccination plan must ensure that particularly
vulnerable people are not given the vaccine and are not exposed to
people who have been vaccinated
The Center for Disease control says that many people, including
pregnant women, people with weakened immune systems (ie: people
being treated for cancer, those who are HIV positive or transplant
patients) and people with eczema or other skin conditions should not
receive the smallpox vaccine. (See
http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/smallpox/index.asp)
Anyone volunteering to be vaccinated should receive free,
confidential screening for these conditions to protect their health.
The CDC recently estimated that 300,000 people are infected with HIV
but don't know it. They should also be advised that they could put
people in their household with such conditions at risk if they
receive the vaccine.
Patients with such conditions must be protected against accidental
exposure to the vaccine through contact with hospital workers who
have received it -- and should be informed that workers recently
have been vaccinated and made aware of safeguards that are put in
place.
* Workers should be educated about the risks and given the freedom to
decline the vaccine without being subject to discrimination at work.
The smallpox vaccine contains the live vaccinia virus. The vaccine
cannot transmit smallpox, but it could cause serious and life-
threatening illnesses in vulnerable people who come in contact with
the vaccine.
* People who volunteer to receive the vaccine should not face loss of
income if they cannot work as a result. The CDC estimates that
approximately 30% of those who are vaccinated will feel too sick to
work and provide proper patient care for one or more days. Roughly
10% could have a serious reaction.
* Vaccine manufacturers and those who administer it have been offered
immunity from liability in a proposal tucked into the Homeland
Security Bill, so a simple and fair compensation system -- like the
federal Vaccine Injury Compensation Fund -- should be made available
to assist anyone who is injured from receiving the vaccine or coming
into contact with someone who received it.
* Unsafe needles must not be used. Earlier this year, the federal
government purchased 50 million conventional needles (sharps without
safety protection) -- which have been outlawed for such uses by the
federal government and most states -- to ship with the vaccine.
Safer needles that would protect against HIV and hepatitis being
transmitted from accidental needle sticks are available for only
pennies more per needle.
* Health care workers and others who are among the initial group of
volunteers should be monitored and any adverse effects reported to
and tracked by the federal government so the public can fully
evaluate the risk of the vaccine -- especially since press reports
indicate that President Bush plans to have millions more "first
responders" vaccinated in the future, and the entire population by
2004.
With 1.5 million members, SEIU is the largest union of health care workers
in the United States and the largest union in the AFL-CIO. SEIU's members
include 110,000 nurses and 20,000 doctors, many of whom work in hospitals and
public health settings.
For more information about health care workers' concerns about the
smallpox vaccination plan or to talk with a nurse or other hospital employee
about the issue, contact TJ Michels at (202) 898-3321.
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ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND
MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION
PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS
OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR
LEGAL ADVICE. THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND
COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH
YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.