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Speaking at a Senate hearing Tuesday, scientists
said that a vaccine to protect the elderly against the West Nile
virus could be ready in about three years. According to Dr. Anthony Fauci, head
of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, an experimental
vaccine in which West Nile genes were
added to the structure of the yellow fever vaccine safeguarded animals against
West Nile.
Dr. Fauci noted that Acambis, a
biotechnology company, plans to launch small human safety tests of the vaccine
soon, and if it is found successful, the vaccine will likely be used during
outbreaks to protect the elderly and those with weakened immune systems.
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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.
"A foolish faith in authority is the worst enemy of truth."
-- Albert Einstein, letter to a friend, 1901
"I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education."
-- Thomas Jefferson, letter to William C. Jarvis, September 28, 1820
"What's the point of vaccination if it doesn't protect you from the unvaccinated?"
-- Sandy Gottstein
"Who gets to decide what the greater good is and how many will be sacrificed to it?"