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April 29, 2002

U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS

"The Vaccination Question: Policy to Be Drafted on Smallpox Inoculation" New York Newsday (www.newsday.com) (04/28/02) P. A6; Ricks, Delthia

A sub-panel of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will hold hearings in Atlanta early next month on the question of who should be vaccinated against smallpox and when.  By the end of 2002, the U.S. government is expected to have sufficient quantities of smallpox vaccine to immunize every person in the United States. There is considerable disagreement, however, as to who should receive the vaccine.  The problem is that the smallpox vaccine is known to sometimes cause severe side-effects, including body-covering sores, brain damage, and even death.  At the hearings, a number of different approaches will be discussed. The first approach would be to launch a mass vaccination campaign, but most vaccine experts would be against such an initiative.  The other approaches include vaccinating only "first responders," such as police officers, firefighters, health care workers, and ambulance attendants; vaccinating only those people who want to be inoculated; and distributing smallpox vaccine to all 50 states, so that local public health officials could work out their own preparedness plans.

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.