Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a member of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory panel, is pushing to delay the recommended dose of hepatitis B vaccine at birth. The move could limit children's access to this crucial protection against a virus that can lead to liver cancer.
The hepatitis B virus is transmitted through blood and bodily fluids, even in microscopic amounts. Before vaccines became available in the 1980s, McMahon, a liver specialist who has spent decades treating patients with the disease, saw young lives cut short by the virus. He remembers an 8-year-old boy who complained of stomach pain before discovering he had developed a rapidly growing tumor on his liver.
While hepatitis B can be transmitted through direct contact, it is also highly contagious, even when infected individuals are asymptomatic. McMahon has cared for children who tested negative at birth but later became infected through indirect contact. He attributes the virus's high infectiousness to its ability to survive on surfaces for a week and spread quickly through tiny amounts of blood.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that all pregnant people be screened for hepatitis B, but it estimates that up to 16% are not tested. If private insurers cover the vaccine, misinformation from Kennedy's meeting could still lead families to believe the vaccine harms their babies, according to Dr. Sean O'Leary, chair of the Committee on Infectious Diseases for the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The three-dose hepatitis B vaccine has a proven track record of safety, with numerous studies showing it does not increase the risk of infant death or serious reactions. In fact, the vaccine has saved countless lives by preventing liver cancer in children who receive all three doses. The CDC estimates that 2.4 million people in the U.S. have hepatitis B and that half do not know they are infected.
As experts warn, delaying the recommended dose could lead to more cases of the disease circulating in American communities, increasing the risk of contraction for those who don't get vaccinated. This, in turn, can result in higher medical costs for patients and the broader healthcare system.
If you're an expectant parent considering whether or not to give your newborn the hepatitis B vaccine, Dr. William Schaffner advises talking to your doctor about the risks and benefits. The vaccine is crucial in preventing liver cancer, which can be deadly if left untreated. Schaffner emphasizes that even if a pregnant woman tests negative for the virus, it's still essential to administer the birth dose to prevent infection.
Ultimately, as more countries model this program on the U.S. approach, it becomes clear that delaying the recommended dose of hepatitis B vaccine at birth is not an advisable move.
The hepatitis B virus is transmitted through blood and bodily fluids, even in microscopic amounts. Before vaccines became available in the 1980s, McMahon, a liver specialist who has spent decades treating patients with the disease, saw young lives cut short by the virus. He remembers an 8-year-old boy who complained of stomach pain before discovering he had developed a rapidly growing tumor on his liver.
While hepatitis B can be transmitted through direct contact, it is also highly contagious, even when infected individuals are asymptomatic. McMahon has cared for children who tested negative at birth but later became infected through indirect contact. He attributes the virus's high infectiousness to its ability to survive on surfaces for a week and spread quickly through tiny amounts of blood.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that all pregnant people be screened for hepatitis B, but it estimates that up to 16% are not tested. If private insurers cover the vaccine, misinformation from Kennedy's meeting could still lead families to believe the vaccine harms their babies, according to Dr. Sean O'Leary, chair of the Committee on Infectious Diseases for the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The three-dose hepatitis B vaccine has a proven track record of safety, with numerous studies showing it does not increase the risk of infant death or serious reactions. In fact, the vaccine has saved countless lives by preventing liver cancer in children who receive all three doses. The CDC estimates that 2.4 million people in the U.S. have hepatitis B and that half do not know they are infected.
As experts warn, delaying the recommended dose could lead to more cases of the disease circulating in American communities, increasing the risk of contraction for those who don't get vaccinated. This, in turn, can result in higher medical costs for patients and the broader healthcare system.
If you're an expectant parent considering whether or not to give your newborn the hepatitis B vaccine, Dr. William Schaffner advises talking to your doctor about the risks and benefits. The vaccine is crucial in preventing liver cancer, which can be deadly if left untreated. Schaffner emphasizes that even if a pregnant woman tests negative for the virus, it's still essential to administer the birth dose to prevent infection.
Ultimately, as more countries model this program on the U.S. approach, it becomes clear that delaying the recommended dose of hepatitis B vaccine at birth is not an advisable move.
i mean seriously what's wrong w/ robert f kennedy jr ? he's got some serious misinformation goin on there & it's gonna affect so many kids 
my cousin has hep b & she didn't get vaccinated until like 5 yrs old 
now she's all good but what if she wasn't? 
the stats r clear - delayed vaccination = more cases of hep b circulating in communities 
& that means higher medical costs for everyone 
i'm so mad at kennedy jr for spreadin' false info like this 
we need to stick w/ the CDC's recs on vaccinations, fam 
i'm so worried about this news!!! delaying the hepatitis b vaccine at birth could be super harmful to kids 
we should be doing everything possible to protect our little ones from this risk 
let's make sure to spread accurate info and get more people vaccinated asap 
. I mean, we know that hepatitis B can be transmitted through tiny amounts of blood and bodily fluids, making it super contagious even when people are asymptomatic 
. If they delay the vaccination, it could lead to more cases of the disease circulating around, which would be disastrous 
. We've seen this happen before with other vaccines, and it's always a huge issue 
. The fact that up to 16% of pregnant people aren't even being screened for hepatitis B is already a problem, so delaying vaccination would only make things worse 
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. We should always talk to our doctors and do our own research before making any big decisions about our health 
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Vaccine is life-saving, don't @ me!
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. I think it's great that Dr. Schaffner is emphasizing talking to your doctor about the risks and benefits - let's get informed and make decisions based on facts 
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. If we delay the recommended dose, it could lead to more cases of the disease spreading in our communities, and that would be a disaster 
. That's just terrifying 
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. It's like we're living in a world where science and facts don't matter anymore 
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. Let's get those babies vaccinated and keep our communities healthy and safe 
just saw robert f kennedy jr pushing to delay the first dose of hepatitis b vaccine and i'm lowkey freaking out it's a proven lifesaver and now he's gonna make ppl think its bad for their babies? 2.4 million ppl in us have no idea they're infected and delaying this vaccine could lead to more cases circulating in communities 
. The stats on hepatitis B are crazy, 2.4 million people in the US alone and half don't even know they have it. We need to be protecting our young people, not putting their health at risk because of some questionable vaccine science 
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. I'm not buying it. We need to be talking about this stuff, not just letting experts dictate what's best for us.
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. Let's hope more people get educated about the risks and benefits of this vaccine, so we can make informed choices for ourselves and our families 
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The fact that he's spreading misinformation and potentially putting lives at risk because of his own doubts is alarming 
Not to mention, it's not like this is the first time we've seen anti-vaxxer misinformation spread like wildfire 
. It's just so... predictable 
. Get it together, guys! We need more trust in our healthcare system, not less 
This means more cases of liver cancer will pop up in the US, leading to way more medical bills 
. I mean, we know how contagious this virus is - one tiny drop of blood can spread it, and it can survive on surfaces for a week 
. We can't just let misinformation from some meetings spread like wildfire 
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. And let's not forget that this virus affects 2.4 million people in the US alone 
. We need to protect our kids from this disease, no matter what