MARIN COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH officials are urging families and health care providers to maintain strong newborn vaccination practices following last week’s vote by a federal advisory panel to end the universal recommendation for hepatitis B vaccination for all infants at birth.
In response, Marin County has launched a new online hub with vaccine fact sheets, recommendations and ways to connect.
The vote by the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices departs from recommendations for the vaccine made by the same panel since 1991.
According to the California Department of Public Health, the hepatitis B vaccine is credited for reducing pediatric hepatitis B infections in the United States by 99 percent, from 16,000 cases to fewer than 20. To date, more than 1 billion doses of hepatitis B vaccine have been administered worldwide. Extensive global data show that the vaccine has a strong safety record and is highly effective at preventing hepatitis B infection and its long-term complications.
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is an organization within the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It includes up to 19 voting members responsible for making vaccine recommendations. Members are selected by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, following an application and nomination process.
‘Science has not changed’
“This vote represents another step backward for child health at the national level, but it does not change what we know to be true,” said Dr. Lisa Santora, Marin County public health officer. “Parents deserve consistency, clarity, and choice. While the national vote has introduced confusion, the science has not changed — and neither has our commitment to using it to guide newborn care in Marin County.”
The ACIP also recommended last week that parents should consult their provider to obtain blood tests following each dose of the vaccine series. According to a statement released by Marin County Public Health, there was no credible evidence presented to the panel to support either of these changes.
Delaying the birth dose of hepatitis B vaccine and using blood tests to guide vaccination will lead to more children and adults developing preventable liver disease and liver cancer with no evidence of a safety benefit, the statement said.
Hepatitis B is a serious viral liver disease that can be transmitted at birth, and up to 90% of infected infants develop lifelong infection — a rate far higher than in older children or adults. Lifelong infection greatly increases the risk of cirrhosis, liver cancer, and premature death. Administering the vaccine at birth remains the single most effective way to prevent these outcomes and ensure long-term health.
The federal decision may have implications for access: more than half of all childhood vaccines administered in Marin County are provided through the federal Vaccines for Children program, which relies on ACIP recommendations to determine which vaccines are supplied at no cost to eligible families. Changes at the federal level could limit access, reduce choice for parents and providers, and create new barriers to timely vaccination.
“This vote represents another step backward for child health at the national level, but it does not change what we know to be true.”
Dr. Lisa Santora, Marin County public health officer
In a separate statement last week, the West Coast Health Alliance, a coalition of public health agencies in California, Oregon and Washington, also disagreed with the ACIP’s change to decades-long vaccine recommendation. The WCHA strongly supports that hepatitis B vaccination to be routinely offered to all newborns, with the first dose of the vaccine given within 24 hours of birth for newborns weighing at least 2,000 grams (4 pounds, 7 ounces), followed by completion of the vaccine series.
“This recommendation aligns with trusted national medical organizations including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the Infectious Diseases Society of America,” the WCHA statement said.
The county’s new online resource hub can be found at www.marinhhs.org/vaccine-resources.
Additional information can be found at the California Department of Public Health’s website on immunization recommendations and the American Academy of Pediatrics’ site.
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