Category: Immunization News

Kennedy Has a Fundraiser in the Middle of the Largest and Longest Measles Outbreak in Recent New York History

Remember when Andrew Wakefield went to Minnesota during their large measles outbreak?

It’s reminiscent of the NRA holding one of their conventions in a city after a big shooting, isn’t it?

Kennedy Has a Fundraiser in the Middle of the Largest and Longest Measles Outbreak in Recent New York History

While it seemed like a big outbreak at the time, those 13 cases would actually be considered rather small these days. In fact, a more recent outbreak in Minnesota, in 2017, had at least 79 cases!

And not surprisingly, anti-vaccine folks also visited the state to try and keep that outbreak going!

Do these folks ever learn?

Flash forward to 2019…

Since September of 2018, New York has seen over 332 cases of measles in two big outbreaks in Brooklyn and Rockland County.

So where does Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. choose to go for a fundraiser?

Where does he show up on TV to push his message about vaccine dangers?

Yup, New York City.

Lori Stokes: “Can I switch gears for a minute and talk about vaccines…”

Kennedy: “When I was a kid, we got three vaccines. That I took. My kids got 64 mandated vaccines.”

Rosanna Scotto: “How many? 64?”

Kennedy: “64”

Rosanna Scotto: “Wow!”

Kennedy: “Mandated doses. Today’s kids get 72, by the end of next year it will be 75. It’s all driven by profit. Most of these diseases are illnesses that you don’t need to be vaccinated for. “

Fox 5 Good Day New York

Wow indeed. That sounds like a lot because kids typically only get 13 vaccines that protect them against 16 vaccine-preventable diseases. We don’t even have 64 vaccines!

You only get to a number like 64 or 72 or 75 if you inflate the count to make it sound scarier.

In reality, if you count a yearly flu vaccine, kids get about 54 doses of vaccines through age 18.

Are any for diseases that you don’t need to be vaccinated for?

Which disease do you want your kids to get?

Do you want them to get tetanus, meningitis, epiglottitis, diphtheria, meningococcemia, cancer (hepatitis B and HPV infections) or to have grandchildren with congenital rubella syndrome?

Vaccines are safe, with few risks, and are necessary.

Ask yourself why folks like this are still allowed to push this kind of misinformation on folks, especially in the middle of an outbreak.

More on Kennedy’s Fundraisers

Japan’s Rubella Outbreak Should Be a Warning About What Could Happen Here

Do you remember when we used to have rubella outbreaks in the United States?

There is a level 2 travel alert for Japan because of outbreaks of rubella.

Yeah, me neither, but in the rubella epidemics of the 1960s, rubella caused 2,100 neonatal deaths and 20,000 infants to be born with congenital rubella syndrome.

Japan’s Rubella Outbreak

Thanks to the rubella vaccine, the ‘R’ in the MMR, we rarely hear about rubella anymore.

Tragically, like measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases, rubella is coming back.

RubellaCongenital Rubella Syndrome
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There are still relatively few cases, but most of us would like to keep it that way.

The US had a big spike in rubella cases in the last 1980s.

We remember that with the return of measles in the late 1980s, rubella came back right along with it, causing 13 deaths and 77 cases of congenital rubella syndrome!

And that’s what is happening in many countries right now.

In Japan, for example, in addition to a rise in measles cases this year, they are seeing big outbreaks of rubella, with weekly totals exceeding 100 cases! These are numbers that are close to what they saw during outbreaks in 2013, a year that ended with 14,344 cases of rubella and 32 cases of congenital rubella syndrome.

Japan is on track to have a big rubella year.
Japan is on track to have a big rubella year.

And they are already reporting at least one case of congenital rubella syndrome, a 4 week old, which is not surprising, considering that they had nearly 3,000 cases of rubella last year.

A newspaper article in 1965 warned about the perils of rubella and congenital rubella syndrome.
A newspaper article in 1965 warned about the perils of rubella and congenital rubella syndrome.

Is that what we want to happen here too? Are folks looking forward to having to worry about babies being born with congenital rubella syndrome, a vaccine-preventable disease?

A vaccine-preventable disease that was declared eliminated in the United States in 2004.

More on Japan’s Rubella Outbreak

Why Will Paul Thomas’ Patients Be Excluded from School in Oregon?

Like several other states, Oregon is working to strengthen their vaccine laws by making it harder for parents to skip or delay a child’s vaccines.

An unvaccinated child in Oregon nearly died with tetanus recently...
An unvaccinated child in Oregon nearly died with tetanus recently…

This is in response to growing measles outbreaks in the area and the abuse of non-medical exemptions.

Why Will Paul Thomas’ Patients Be Excluded from School in Oregon?

Not surprisingly, a local pediatrician, Paul Thomas, who seems dead set on becoming the next Bob Sears, complete with a book that pushes a so-called alternative non-standard, parent-selected, delayed protection vaccine schedule, is protesting Oregon’s new vaccine bill.

“Although we give vaccines in my office every day, I oppose HB 3063. As you consider HB 3063, I thought you should have the real-world data from the largest pediatric practice in Oregon with the most patients who will be affected by your proposed bill.”

Paul Thomas

Paul Thomas goes on to explain why his patients haven’t received all of their recommended vaccines.

One reason is that he doesn’t even offer the rotavirus vaccine, although he doesn’t mention that. But how do you make an informed choice about a vaccine when the vaccine isn’t even available to you?

“Most of my patients make the educated decision not to give one vaccine-hepatitis B – to their infants. This is because you catch hepatitis B from sex and IV drug use so if a child is born to a mother that does not have hepatitis B, the child is at no risk of getting this disease. Preschool and young school-aged children are not at risk for hepatitis B, which is why most countries in the developed world only recommend this vaccine for at-risk groups and not for everyone.”

Paul Thomas

Since he doesn’t think they are at any risk when they are younger, does Dr. Thomas advocate that his patients catch up on their hepatitis B series when they are older? Does he mention that until we switched to a universal vaccination program, some infants were missed and developed perinatal hepatitis B? Or the risks of needle sticks, etc.?

“These are the kinds of details and nuances that we must discuss with every vaccine. Whether we are talking about vaccines, antibiotics, ADD medication, or even a surgical procedure, we spend a good deal of time with our patients providing what we in medicine call “informed consent.” We explain the risks and benefits of the recommended medical intervention, the risks and benefits of not doing the intervention, and the alternatives. These conversations are best had in the privacy of a doctor’s office, not in the state legislature. As each child is different, we do not believe there should be any one-size-fits-all medicine. “

Paul Thomas

Although Paul Thomas talks about informed consent, a very important part of medicine, it is important to keep in mind that like most folks in the modern anti-vaccine movement, he doesn’t really seem to offer it.

He provides misinformed consent, pushing propaganda that overstates that risks of vaccines, underestimating the risks of vaccine-preventable diseases, and rarely stating the benefits of getting vaccinated.

“Finally, I am also concerned that thousands of families will either leave Oregon-as tens of thousands of families have left California – or leave the public school system and homeschool instead. While I have nothing against homeschooling, I believe this would result in a large and unfortunate loss of revenue for Oregon’s already underfunded public schools. “

Paul Thomas

Perhaps Paul Thomas missed it, but California is doing just fine after they passed their vaccine law, despite issues with some California doctors have taken advantage of fearful parents, and instead of doing the work to help parents understand that vaccines are safe with few risks, they are writing unjustified medical exemptions.

After years of declines, the vaccination rates for kids in California entering kindergarten in 2017 were at the highest rate since at least 1998!
After years of declines, the vaccination rates for kids in California entering kindergarten in 2017 were at the highest rate since at least 1998!

It’s a good reminder that the one lesson Oregon can learn from California is to make stricter rules on what counts as a medical exemption…

“We all have the same goal, which is to help Oregon’s children survive and thrive. No one wants a recurrence of infectious diseases in Oregon or anywhere in the United States. “

Paul Thomas

If Paul Thomas’ real motivation was to stop the outbreaks of vaccine-preventable disease and keep states from passing new vaccine laws, then maybe he should stop scaring parents away from vaccinating and protecting their kids.

“I hired an independent data expert, Dr. Michael Gaven, MD, to analyze the outcomes from my practice as part of a quality assurance project. Dr. Gaven studied the outcomes for those patients born into my practice during the past decade, since I opened my doors on June 1 2008.”

Paul Thomas

What outcomes? Is it how many of the kids in his practice developed vaccine-preventable diseases unnecessarily?

No, Paul Thomas published data that he thinks says that his unvaccinated kids get less autism than everyone else, except that there is a lot of bias in the numbers, we don’t know how many kids left his practice (especially any who might have developed autism), or even what criteria he uses to diagnose kids with autism. The numbers likely aren’t even statistically significant.

Vaccines are safe, with few risks, and they are necessary. And they are not associated with autism. Stop listening and spreading propaganda, vaccinate your kids, and let’s stop these outbreaks.

More on Paul Thomas

Vaccine Op-Eds

The Editorial Boards of the leading newspapers in the United States are making sure we know their views about vaccines and vaccine hesitancy.

One of the first vaccine op-eds appeared in The New York Times.

It started with The New York Times, but certainly didn’t end there.

Vaccine Op-Eds

In addition to two hearings before Congress, many other major newspapers have published vaccine editorials of their own.

“It’s no mystery how we got here. On the internet, anti-vaccine propaganda has outpaced pro-vaccine public health information. The anti-vaxxers, as they are colloquially known, have hundreds of websites promoting their message, a roster of tech- and media-savvy influencers and an aggressive political arm that includes at least a dozen political action committees. Defense against this onslaught has been meager. The C.D.C., the nation’s leading public health agency, has a website with accurate information, but no loud public voice. The United States Surgeon General’s office has been mum. So has the White House — and not just under the current administration. That leaves just a handful of academics who get bombarded with vitriol, including outright threats, every time they try to counter pseudoscience with fact.”

The New York Times on How to Inoculate Against Anti-Vaxxers

“The wretched pox is getting closer. We hope you and yours are vaccinated.”

Chicago Tribune on Major new study adds to our plea: Vaccinate your children against measles

“But a child with fragile health, whose doctor advises to delay vaccines for health reasons, could be in extreme danger in Washington state because so many parents use philosophical exemptions. Vulnerable children are much more likely to be exposed to measles than they should be because Washington allows parents to skip required immunizations based solely on their personal beliefs.”

The Seattle Times on End philosophical vaccine exemption

“We can get kids vaccinated, or we can be in danger together.”

Chicago Sun-Times on Measles, anti-vaccine myths and some advice for Illinois

“Treating a disease like measles and stopping its spread is an expensive proposition. Not to mention, it endangers those who can’t get vaccinated, including vulnerable newborns.”

The Baltimore Sun on It’s about time for a backlash against anti-vaxers

“Recent outbreaks underscore the risks of allowing nonmedical exemptions.”

USA Today on Measles outbreaks underscore risks of allowing nonmedical vaccination exemptions

“The point is, people who do not get vaccinated are threatening the whole population, and DeFoor’s letter is a reminder that failing to get vaccinated can have lifelong consequences.”

The Gainesville Sun on Anti-vaccine myths are dangerous

“The best solution, however, is for parents who are tempted to claim a religious exemption to look at the facts. If your fear of vaccines is based on information repeated in social media or by an anti-vaccine group, you need to try again. Look at medical studies or talk to your doctor.

The measles vaccine can save your child’s life, and it can save the lives of those who are medically unable to take the vaccine.”

Tuscaloosa News on Measles vaccine a must for your child and others

“This isn’t one of those scary epidemics in which the cause and solution are unclear. The cause is a reckless embrace of myth over scientific fact. The solution is vaccination.”

St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Measles is back, thanks to misinformation and loopholes in vaccination rules.

“Yet the distrust of anti-vaxxer parents is a threat to everyone’s children and not just their own.”

The Guardian view on vaccination: a duty of public health

“The anti-vaxxers’ hypothesis rests largely on the shoulders of bunk science that has been discredited and disproven by a number of sources. But this hasn’t stopped their ideas from taking hold.”

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Preventable problems: Anti-vaxxers rely on bunk science

“We identify with parents’ desire to protect their children. But shunning proven vaccinations is making families and communities less healthy, not more so. We urge lawmakers to champion educational efforts to help parents understand that lesson before a major outbreak strikes here.”

Austin American Statesman on Austin’s anti-vaccination rate is nothing to brag about

After reading these Op-Eds, it is even more amazing to realize how far we have come from when the media used to be part of the problem.

Whatever you think about Andrew Wakefield, the real villains of the MMR scandal are the media.”

Ben Goldacre on The MMR story that wasn’t

It’s nice that they are advocating for vaccines and our children now.

More on Vaccine Op-Eds

Why Did Anti-Vaccine Folks Applaud Rand Paul’s Testimony at the Senate Health Committee Hearing on Vaccines and Outbreaks?

Wait, what?

Why Did Anti-Vaccine Folks Applaud Rand Paul's Testimony at the Senate Health Committee Hearing on Vaccines and Outbreaks?

Anti-vaccine folks actually applauded Rand Paul’s testimony at the Senate Health Committee Hearing on Vaccines and Outbreaks?

Why Did Anti-Vaccine Folks Applaud Rand Paul’s Testimony at the Senate Health Committee Hearing on Vaccines and Outbreaks?

Surprisingly, many of the things he said weren’t anti-vaccine.

I guess they ignored those parts…

  • …given the choice, I do believe that the benefits of most vaccines vastly outweigh the risks.
  • I’m not hear to say don’t vaccinate your kids… if this hearing is for persuasion, I’m all for the persuasion. I vaccinated myself. I vaccinated my kids.
  • For myself and my kids, I believe that the benefits of vaccines greatly outweigh the risks…

So why were they cheering?

Because that’s not all he said…

“Today, instead of persuasion, many governments have taken to mandating a whole host of vaccines, including vaccines for non-lethal diseases.”

Sen Rand Paul

While some vaccine-preventable diseases are more deadly than others, they can all be deadly. From rotavirus and HPV to hepatitis A, these diseases can kill people.

Which vaccine-preventable disease does he think is non-lethal?

“Sometimes these vaccine mandates have run amok. As when the government mandated a rotavirus vaccine that was later recalled because it was causing intestinal blockage in children.”

Sen Rand Paul

That’s an interesting example of “the government” that has run amok…

Which “government” mandated that the original rotavirus vaccine be given to children?

As Senator Paul hopefully understands, the Federal government doesn’t mandate vaccines for anyone. And since it must be given at such a young age, even states don’t actually mandate that the rotavirus vaccine be given to children…

Even today, there are no mandates for the rotavirus vaccine.

If there were, it still wouldn’t mean giving up your Liberty, after all, vaccine mandates don’t mean forced vaccination.

“It is wrong to say that there are no risks to vaccines. Even the government admits that children are sometimes injured by vaccines. Since 1988, over $4 billion has been paid out from the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. Despite the government admitting to and paying $4 billion for vaccine injuries, no informed consent is used or required when you vaccinate your child. This may be the only medical procedure in today’s medical world where an informed consent is not required. “

Sen Rand Paul

No one says that there are no risks to vaccines. That’s a classic anti-vaccine talking point.

What folks actually say is that vaccines are safe, with few serious risks.

And the $4 billion that Rand Paul and anti-vaccine folks often talk about has been paid out over more than 30 years, during a time that we have given nearly 300 million doses of vaccines each and every year!

But what’s that he said about informed consent?

Why wouldn’t informed consent be given or be required before getting a vaccine?

Of course, parents get informed consent before getting vaccines.

They don’t get informed consent if they decide to skip or delay their child’s vaccines after getting bad information.

“Now proponents of mandatory government vaccination argue that parents who refuse to vaccinate their children risk spreading these diseases to the immunocompromised community. There doesn’t seem to be enough evidence of this happening for it to be recorded as a statistic, but it could happen. But if the fear of this is valid, are we to find that next we will be mandating flu vaccine?”

Sen Rand Paul

Lastly, why didn’t Sen Paul find evidence that intentionally unvaccinated kids are spreading disease to the immunocompromised community?

Maybe he didn’t look…

It happens.

Do we need it to happen more often so that it becomes a large statistic before he and others will advocate that folks get vaccinated to attend school?

Do you understand have a better understand now why anti-vaccine folks were cheering after his testimony?

“If you believe in Liberty, that’s fine, don’t get immunized. But I don’t think that you need to necessarily expose others to disease.”

Sen Bill Cassidy

It should give you a better understanding both of Rand Paul’s ideas and those of the anti-vaccine movement.

More on Rand Paul’s Testimony at the Senate Health Committee Hearing on Vaccines and Outbreaks

What Will House and Senate Lawmakers Do as They Investigate Measles Outbreaks?

In addition to an increased number of State Legislators looking at what they can do to stop the increasing number of outbreaks we have been seen each year, there is now news that House lawmakers will also see what they can do.

Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Ranking Member Greg Walden (R-OR), Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Diana DeGette (D-CO), and Oversight and Investigations Ranking Member Brett Guthrie (R-KY) announced today that the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the current measles outbreak and response efforts on Wednesday, February 27. More information on timing, location and witnesses will be announced next week.

“Measles is a highly contagious, life-threatening virus that was previously eliminated in the United States thanks to the success of the measles vaccine,” the four bipartisan Committee leaders said.

“Unfortunately, measles cases are on the rise as a consequence of the virus’s transmission among unvaccinated groups. The reemergence of vaccine-preventable diseases, including measles, presents a serious public health threat, especially for those who rely on ‘herd immunity.’ We look forward to learning more from public health officials on addressing the current outbreak, efforts to prevent the disease’s spread, and strategies to support vaccination efforts,” Pallone, Walden, DeGette and Guthrie concluded.

E&C Bipartisan Leaders Announce Subcommittee Hearing on Measles Outbreak and Response Efforts on February 27

So happened at this entitled, Confronting a Growing Public Health Threat: Measles Outbreaks in the U.S.?

This meeting doesn't mean that the Federal government is stepping in to change vaccine laws.
This meeting doesn’t mean that the Federal government is stepping in to change vaccine laws.

We heard from several witnesses, including:

  • Nancy Messonnier, MD – Director, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD)
  • Anthony Fauci, MD – Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)

And we will hopefully learn more in an upcoming Senate hearing, Vaccines Save Lives: What Is Driving Preventable Disease Outbreaks?, when we will hear from:

  • John Wiesman, DrPH, MPH, Secretary of Health, WA
  • Saad B. Omer, MBBS, MPH, PhD, Emory University
  • Jonathan A. McCullers, MD, Univerity of Tennessee
  • John G. Boyle, President and CEO, Immune Deficiency Foundation
  • Ethan Lindenberger, Norwalk High School

How is the Federal government addressing the current outbreaks, what efforts they are taking to prevent the disease’s spread and what strategies they are making to support vaccination efforts?

“And, unfortunately, the anti-vax movement in certain segments of the population, certainly not generalized, is just growing, and it’s getting worse. And it’s based fundamentally on misinformation.

You don’t want to denigrate people who make those kinds of decisions and essentially attack them. That doesn’t work. You have got to understand they have these beliefs. And the way you try and get them to understand the importance of getting vaccinated is talk about the facts, talk about the evidence. Don’t attack them.”

Dr. Fauci on the PBS Newshour

Just as importantly, we will hopefully hear more ideas on how to address the misinformation about vaccines that scares parents away from vaccinating and protecting their kids.

And what can be done about the alternative, non-evidence based practitioners that influence the decisions parents make about vaccines and other health care decisions.

More on Confronting Measles Outbreaks

Updated on March 3, 2019

New Vaccine Bills and Laws in 2019

California passed a new vaccine law, SB 277, in 2015.

With the passage of SB 277, California joined Mississippi and West Virginia as the only states that do not allow either religious or personal belief vaccine exemptions.

A few other states passed new vaccine laws of their own in the following years.

Despite what anti-vaccine folks might think, not one of the new laws means that anyone is forcing kids to get vaccinated though.

New Vaccine Bills and Laws in 2019

The idea of vaccine mandates is a big issue as we continue to see outbreaks of measles around the world.

New vaccine laws being proposed across the United States include:

  • House Bill 2505 in Arizona will change their non-medical exemptions from personal to religious
  • Senate Bill 1201 in Arizona will require schools to post immunization rates on their websites
  • House Bill 7005 in Connecticut would permit ordained, commissioned and licensed members of the clergy to acknowledge parental statements concerning religious objections to vaccinations required for enrollment in public and nonpublic schools, instead of school nurses.
  • Senate Bill 354 in Florida updates their immunization registry
  • Senate Bill 1659 in Illinois adds the HPV vaccine to the list of childhood vaccines that kids receive before starting 6th grade
  • HF 206 in Iowa eliminates the religious vaccine exemption.
  • Senate Bill 133 in Kentucky adds vaccine requirements for college students
  • Legislative Document 798 has been sent to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs in Maine and would remove non-medical vaccine exemptions
  • SD 1520 in Massachusetts adds the HPV vaccine to the list of childhood vaccines that kids receive
  • Assembly Bill 3818 in New Jersey clarifies the religious exemption to vaccination, so that a general philosophical or moral objection to getting vaccinated will no longer count as a true religious exemption
  • Senate Bill 298 in New York adds the HPV vaccine to the list of childhood vaccines that kids receive
  • Senate Bill 925 in Oklahoma requires school districts to report exemption rates
  • House Bill 2783 in Oregon requires parents to submit a form signed by a health care practitioner if they are not going to vaccinate their kids and a signed certificate verifying that they completed a vaccine educational module
  • Senate Bill 329 in Texas simply requires schools to post how many kids are claiming vaccine exemptions
  • House Bill 238 in Vermont eliminates religious exemptions
  • House Bill 1638 has already passed a Health Care and Wellness Committee in Washington and will remove personal or philosophical exemptions for the MMR vaccine
  • Senate Bill 5841 in Washington will remove personal or philosophical exemptions for all vaccines

It’s easy to navigate the new laws.

Get educated and get your kids vaccinated. Vaccines are safe, with few risks, vaccines work, and vaccines are necessary.

Be a vaccine advocate and make sure your state legislators know that you support strong vaccine laws that will keep us all protected from vaccine-preventable diseases, as more and more folks try and abuse vaccine exemptions.

What To Know About Vaccine Mandate Laws

Vaccine mandate laws are expanding as we are seeing more outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases.

More Information on Vaccine Mandate Laws:

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