To the Editor:
I am a retired Family Physician who relied on the data and recommendations from the CDC and its Advisory Committee on Immunizations (ACIP). However, the recent changes at the CDC are alarming.
The ACIP changed the recommendations for Hepatitis B vaccination starting after age 2 months rather than at birth, and recommend babies have a blood test to check for antibody levels after the first shot, prior to the next, assuming incorrectly that the levels will persist with fewer vaccines.
A child is born exposed to Hepatitis B, if untreated, faces a lifetime of incurable chronic Hepatitis B infection, which can be spread to others and can lead to liver failure or liver cancer later in life. It spreads through contact with body fluids and blood. The Hepatitis B vaccine is safe, has WORKED!
The ACIP plans to change the entire childhood vaccine schedule, not based on tested and peer reviewed data, but politics and sometimes disproven data. I fear the ACIP’s actions are creating distrust, which may dissuade parents who want to vaccinate their children, from doing so.
Medical recommendations should never be based on political views, but based on objectively tested and repeatable data.
Catherine Cannariato, MD
Warwick