Tag: Paul Offit

Does the CDC Own Any Patents on Vaccines?

Have you heard the CDC owns patents on vaccines?

“The CDC is a subsidiary of the pharmaceutical industry. The agency owns more than 20 vaccine patents and purchases and sells $4.1 billion in vaccines annually. Congressman Dave Weldon has pointed out that the primary metric for success across the CDC is how many vaccines the agency sells and how successfully the agency expands its vaccine program—regardless of any negative effects on human health.”

Robert F Kennedy, Jr

Wait, the CDC sells vaccines?

To who?

Myths About the CDC Selling Vaccines

The CDC doesn’t sell vaccines. That’s not their mission.

“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) works 24/7 to protect America from health, safety, and security threats, both foreign and in the U.S. Whether diseases start at home or abroad, are chronic or acute, curable or preventable, human error or deliberate attack, CDC fights disease and supports communities to do the same.”

CDC Mission, Role and Pledge

They do buy vaccines. A lot of vaccines.

In 2017, the CDC immunization program spent just over $4.8 billion dollars, including $4.1 billion on the Vaccines for Children program.

“…from March through December 2016, over 13,000 doses of meningococcal conjugate vaccine, purchased using CDC funding, were used to respond to a deadly outbreak of meningitis in Southern California.”

Department Of Health And Human Services Fiscal Year 2018

Did they sell all of those vaccines?

If they did, then they wouldn’t have to request money from Congress each year to buy more vaccines, now would they?

“CDC buys vaccines at a discount and distributes them to grantees—i.e., state health departments and certain local and territorial public health agencies—which in turn distribute them at no charge to those private physicians’ offices and public health clinics registered as VFC providers.”

The VFC Program: At a Glance

Instead, the vaccines that the CDC buys, at big discounts, since they are buying so many, are offered free to those kids who can’t afford vaccines in the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program and through Section 317 grants.

What About the CDC Vaccine Patents?

Is Kennedy right about the CDC vaccine patents?

“In the course of performing our mission, many CDC researchers identify novel technologies which may be of interest to commercial partners. Some of these technologies are available as a biological or other tangible material for licensing, whereas others are protected under patent.”

Office of the Associate Director for Science (OADS)

OK, so the CDC has patents…

Well, not exactly the CDC. The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services has patents…

Patents of vaccines and vaccine technology are not the big deal that anti-vaccine folks make them out to be.
Patents of vaccines and vaccine technology are not the big deal that anti-vaccine folks make them out to be.

When you think of Kennedy’s claim, do you think that the CDC has the patent on 20 new vaccines? After all, that’s how it sounds, doesn’t it?

They don’t. Instead, they mostly own patents on vaccine technology.

“This technology describes a method for inactivating rotavirus. Traditional inactivation strategies use chemicals that reduce antigenicity (by altering rotavirus proteins), leading to less protection against the virus. Conversely, this method preserves and/or maintains the integrity of viral particles, leading to greater protection against rotavirus. This strategy has been validated in mice, piglets and cattle and further clinical studies are underway.”

A Novel Thermal Method to Inactivate Rotavirus for Use in Vaccines

Why patent these technologies?

Because they were discovered by CDC researchers and if their intellectual properly is not patented, then someone else could patent it, use it or sell it, and keep others from using it.

“After a license is negotiated, post-license compliance must be maintained to ensure the scheduled development of the technology, payment of royalties, and compliance to the license agreement. Based on the terms negotiated in the agreement, a percentage of royalties will go to the inventor, while a portion will go to the originating laboratory for that technology. This allows funding to be reinvested into CDC for the development of additional technologies that can meet other public health needs.”

What is the Process of Technology Transfer?

Should it be a surprise that these patents might generate money?

“Certain people are not considered for ACIP membership. For example, people who are directly employed or have an immediate family member directly employed by a vaccine manufacturer, hold a patent on a vaccine or related product, or serve on a Board of Directors of a vaccine manufacturer are excluded from ACIP membership.”

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and the Childhood Immunization Schedule

Is it a surprise that the CDC and Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) has taken steps to make sure these patents don’t generate any conflicts of interest among those making decisions about vaccines?

“Dr Offit did not sit on the FDA committee that approved any rotavirus vaccine and he was not a member of ACIP, as RFK Jr claims, at the time they voted to recommend adding rotavirus vaccine to the immunization schedule.”

The Truth about vaccines 6: rotavirus

Is it a surprise that Kennedy is just trying to scare folks with all of this talk about selling vaccines and vaccine patents?

What to Know About the CDC’s Vaccine Patents

While the CDC does own and license some patents related to vaccines and vaccine technologies, they don’t actually sell any vaccines.

More on the CDC’s Vaccine Patents

Which Vaccine Is the Most Dangerous?

In 2002, Dan Rather did a report for 60 Minutes on “The Most Dangerous Vaccine.”

Can you guess which vaccine he was reporting on?

Which Vaccine Is the Most Dangerous?

You are thinking his report was about MMR, the so-called “autism shot,” right?

“And then the nurse gave my son that shot. And I remember going, “Oh, God, no!” And soon thereafter I noticed a change. The soul was gone from his eyes.”

Jenny McCarthy on Oprah

It was around the time that the “media’s MMR hoax” was in high gear.

“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

But 60 Minutes had already done a segment on “The MMR Vaccine” with Andrew Wakefield back in 2000.

The smallpox vaccine was considered the most dangerous as President Bush decided whether or not it was necessary to vaccinate millions against this deadly disease.
The smallpox vaccine was considered the most dangerous as President Bush decided whether or not it was necessary to vaccinate millions against this deadly disease.

No, this story was about the smallpox vaccine.

And if you had to rank vaccines from safest to most dangerous, then yes, you could say that the original smallpox vaccine, the one with the most side effects, is the most dangerous.

Fortunately, that very same smallpox vaccine helped eradicate smallpox and few of us need to even think about getting a smallpox vaccine. It is still given to some folks in the military though and is available if necessary.

The story was about a plan to vaccinate many more people, including hospital workers. At the time, there was a worry about terrorist attacks using smallpox.

“Here’s another way to do it. We can make the vaccine. Make sure we understand who’s going to get it, who’s going to be giving it. Then wait, wait for there to be one case of documented smallpox somewhere on the face of this earth and then we can move into vaccinating people, large numbers of people.”

Paul Offit, MD

Not everyone was on board with the plan though. Dr. Offit, for one, didn’t think that it was a good idea to start vaccinating people for a threat that we didn’t know would appear, especially since the older smallpox vaccine had more side effects than other, more modern vaccines.

Again, that doesn’t mean that the smallpox vaccine is dangerous.

Smallpox is dangerous and deadly. If there is a risk that you could get smallpox, then you would much rather have the smallpox vaccine, even with its side effect profile.

And fortunately, a new attenuated smallpox vaccine, Imvamune, is also available and has less side effects. Two other smallpox vaccines, ACAM2000 and APSV, which are similar to the original DryVax vaccine that was used in the US, are also still being used until Imvamune is formally approved by the FDA.

Vaccine preventable diseases are dangerous.

While they aren’t 100% without risk, vaccines, from rotavirus to HPV, are safe and necessary.

What To Know About the Most Dangerous Vaccine

All vaccines are safe and effective, but if you had to rank them, the original smallpox vaccine would be the most dangerous because it has the most side effects.

More on the Most Dangerous Vaccine