Tag: new vaccines

Did the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986 Cause the Immunization Schedule to Triple?

Why do some parents think that the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986 caused the immunization schedule to triple?

The National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act did not cause the immunization schedule to triple.

The usual suspects…

Did the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986 Cause the Immunization Schedule to Triple?

It is not just folks holding anti-vax propaganda signs though.

“In 1986, Congress—awash in Pharma money (the pharmaceutical industry is No. 1 for both political contributions and lobbying spending over the past 20 years)—enacted a law granting vaccine makers blanket immunity from liability for injuries caused by vaccines. If vaccines were as safe as many claim, would we need to give pharmaceutical companies immunity for the injuries they cause? The subsequent gold rush by pharmaceutical companies boosted the number of recommended inoculations from 12 shots of five vaccines in 1986 to 54 shots of 13 vaccines today. A billion-dollar sideline grew into the $50 billion vaccine industry behemoth.”

Robert F Kennedy, Jr on The Harlem vaccine forum

It is a common anti-vax talking point that the immunization schedule ballooned in 1986, with passage of the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act.

It didn’t.

The National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act did not cause the immunization schedule to triple.

In fact, it is very easy to see that most new vaccines weren’t added to the immunization schedule until the late 1990s and after.

  • hepatitis B – 1981
  • Hib – 1985
  • hepatitis B vaccine (improved) – 1986
  • Hib (improved) – 1988
  • Varivax – 1995
  • DTaP – 1996 (replaces DTP)
  • hepatitis A vaccine – 1996
  • RotaShield – 1998 (quickly withdrawn)
  • LYMErix – 1998 (later withdrawn)
  • Prevnar – 2000
  • FluMist – 2004
  • Menactra – 2005 (replaces the Menomune vaccine approved in 1981)
  • Tdap – 2006
  • RotaTeq – 2006
  • Gardasil – 2006
  • Trumenba – 2014

And the immunization schedule did not change very much at all after passage of the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act.

What about Bobby Kennedy‘s other point? Why did we need the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act if vaccines are safe?

Protection from frivolous lawsuits.

What we need now is protection from this kind of misinformation that continues to scare parents away from vaccinating and protecting their kids!

More on the Immunization Schedule

Did Gregory Poland Really Say That MMR Vaccines Can’t Prevent Measles Outbreaks?

One of the pillars of the anti-vaccine movement is their belief that vaccines don’t even work.

They even think that they have graphs to prove it! They don’t…

Did Gregory Poland Really Say That MMR Vaccines Can’t Prevent Measles Outbreaks?

To help them try and argue their point, they also seem to like to cherry pick and misuse quotes from real experts.

Anti-vaccine propaganda from Lawrence Solomon.
Is that what Dr. Poland said?

In 2012, Gregory Poland, the Editor-in-Chief of the journal Vaccine, did publish the article, The Re-Emergence of Measles in Developed Countries: Time to Develop the Next-Generation Measles Vaccines?

No where in the article does he say that the measles vaccine can’t prevent measles outbreaks.

He is just saying that since the vaccine isn’t 100% effective and because measles is so contagious, that it can’t prevent all measles outbreaks.

“Thus, measles outbreaks also occur even among highly vaccinated populations because of primary and secondary vaccine failure, which results in gradually larger pools of susceptible persons and outbreaks once measles is introduced.”

Poland et al on The Re-Emergence of Measles in Developed Countries: Time to Develop the Next-Generation Measles Vaccines?

And we likely won’t be able to eradicate measles with our current measles vaccine, “even though measles can be controlled, and even eliminated in some regions for defined periods of time.”

“Thus, while an excellent vaccine, a dilemma remains.”

Poland et al on The Re-Emergence of Measles in Developed Countries: Time to Develop the Next-Generation Measles Vaccines?

The dilemma is that measles is still around and that people who are too young to be vaccinated, too young to be fully vaccinated, and those with immune system problems who can’t be vaccinated sometimes get measles, in addition to folks who are intentionally unvaccinated.

With a better vaccine, fewer people would get caught up in outbreaks that are typically triggered by folks who are intentionally unvaccinated.

Remember, most outbreaks are traced back to someone who is unvaccinated. This is the person Dr. Poland is describing when he says “once measles is introduced,” as the endemic spread of measles has been eliminated in the United States. All cases are reintroduced from outside the country, typically when someone who is intentionally not vaccinated travels overseas and then returns with measles while they are still contagious.

“But he also said that sometimes people who oppose the vaccines will pick out one sentence in the scientific study and extrapolate it to mean things that it does not mean… He said that measles is the most contagious disease that we know, and yet we found that fear and ignorance is more so.”

Senator Carla Nelson on The Anti-vaxxers Might Wish that What was Lost had not been Found

Unfortunately, a better measles vaccine still won’t protect us from anti-vaccine propaganda.

Vaccines are safe, with few risks, and necessary. Get vaccinated and stop the outbreaks. You don’t have to wait for a new measles vaccine…

More on Did Gregory Poland Say That MMR Vaccines Can’t Prevent Measles Outbreaks?

Did the FDA Approve a New HPV Vaccine for Adults?

What do you know about the HPV vaccine?

Hopefully you know that it can prevent cervical cancer and that lots of folks spread misinformation that is intended to confuse and scare you away from getting vaccinated and protected with it and other vaccines.

Did the FDA Approve a New HPV Vaccine for Adults?

News that the approved ages for Gardasil have been expanded will likely add to that confusion for a little while.

The FDA simply approved the expanded use of the existing Gardasil 9 vaccine – not a new vaccine.
The FDA simply approved the expanded use of the existing Gardasil 9 vaccine – not a new vaccine.

The first thing to understand is that the FDA did not approve a new Gardasil vaccine for older adults.

They very simply expanded the age recommendations for who should get the existing Gardasil 9 vaccine, which was approved back in 2014, replacing the original Gardasil vaccine, which was approved in 2006.

“The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved a supplemental application for Gardasil 9 (Human Papillomavirus (HPV) 9-valent Vaccine, Recombinant) expanding the approved use of the vaccine to include women and men aged 27 through 45 years.”

Why the new age indication?

“In a study in approximately 3,200 women 27 through 45 years of age, followed for an average of 3.5 years, Gardasil was 88 percent effective in the prevention of a combined endpoint of persistent infection, genital warts, vulvar and vaginal precancerous lesions, cervical precancerous lesions, and cervical cancer related to HPV types covered by the vaccine.”

But isn’t the whole point of giving the HPV vaccine to preteens that you want to get them vaccinated and protected before they are sexually active and exposed to and infected by HPV?

Sure, but if you didn’t, and unless you are sure that you have been exposed to and have been infected by all 9 types of HPV strains that Gardasil 9 protects you against, then the vaccine is still a good idea when you are older.

Except FDA approval doesn’t automatically mean that your insurance company will pay for it.

That usually comes once a vaccine is formally added to the immunization schedule by the ACIP.

“In a 2005 study, 92% of insurance plans reported following Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommendations to determine covered vaccines; of those, 60% could extend coverage within 3 months after issuance of recommendations and 13% in 1 month.”

Lindley et al on Financing the Delivery of Vaccines to Children and Adolescents: Challenges to the Current System

And Obamacare still requires insurance plans to provide ACIP-recommended vaccines at no charge.

Will Gardasil 9 be added to the immunization schedule for adults?

The extended age indication for Gardasil 9 will be discussed at the next ACIP meeting.
The extended age indication for Gardasil 9 will be discussed at the next ACIP meeting.

We should know sooner, rather than later. It is on the agenda for the next ACIP meeting on October 25…

More on Gardasil for Older Adults

Why Isn’t There a Vaccine for Leprosy?

Why do anti-vaccine folks talk about leprosy (Hansen’s disease) so much?

“LEPROSY. I’m curious why there isn’t a vaccine for leprosy. With all the other bazillion vaccines out there, why not one for leprosy?”

We don’t have anywhere near a bazillion vaccines, but did you know that there actually is a vaccine for leprosy?

“Why aren’t you walking around concerned about leprosy every day? Why aren’t you concerned about someone from another country bringing leprosy into Australia or the US and somehow exposing all of our most vulnerable to this illness? I’ll tell you why. Because there’s no vaccine for leprosy. You are afraid of what we vaccinate for because these illnesses are hyped up all of the time. It’s propaganda. ”

Learn the Risk – Why aren’t we afraid of all diseases?

Don’t expect the leprosy vaccine to be added to our immunization schedule any time soon or to increase your fears about leprosy, as leprosy is not highly contagious and it can be treated, and even cured.

And while there are about 150 to 250 cases in the United States each year, most are in folks who used to live in areas of the world where leprosy is more common. Unlike measles, you aren’t likely to get leprosy at school or daycare or going to Disneyland, although you could get it if you have a pet armadillo.

Leprosy Vaccines

A vaccine against leprosy is important though. As with other diseases, we are seeing multi-drug resistant forms of Mycobacterium leprae, the bacteria that causes leprosy.

The new leprosy vaccine that is being developed will hopefully help to finally eliminate leprosy in parts of the Africa, Asia and Latin America where it is still a problem.

Throughout much of the 20th Century, people with leprosy in the United States were treated at the National Leprosarium in Carville, Louisiana.
Throughout much of the 20th Century, people with leprosy in the United States were treated at the National Leprosarium in Carville, Louisiana.

But it isn’t the first leprosy vaccine that we will have had.

Various leprosy vaccines have been developed and tested since the 1980s.

Also, the M. bovis BCG vaccine has been known to provide protection against both Mycobacterium tuberculosis (tuberculosis) and the related Mycobacterium leprae (leprosy) since as early as 1939.

“BCG vaccination is recommended in countries or settings with a high incidence of TB and/or high leprosy burden.”

BCG vaccines: WHO position paper – February 2018

The new leprosy vaccine, a sub-unit vaccine, will hopefully be more effective than previous strategies though, and will work to both prevent and treat leprosy.

Another leprosy vaccine, Mycobacterium indicus pranii (MIP), is being developed and tested in India.

Still, leprosy will never be eradicated, as armadillos serve as an animal reservoir for the Mycobacterium leprae  bacteria.

What to Know About Leprosy Vaccines

At least two leprosy vaccines are being developed and tested to help eliminate leprosy from the areas of Africa, Asia and Latin America where it is still a problem.

More on Leprosy Vaccines