Vaccine News
Common Vaccine Beliefs
Chicago Tribune
August 26, 2008
"...Many studies, including a report by the Institute of Medicine, have concluded there is no association between autism and vaccines that contain thimerosal or the MMR vaccine... Not all news and Internet sources are reliable. Doctors recommend that parents visit sites run by reputable medical and scientific organizations that post information based on carefully reviewed research."
Kids' Vaccinations Face Risky Resistance
Chicago Tribune
August 26, 2008
"Doctors say worried parents tend to find scientific data less persuasive than the horror stories they hear about vaccine side effects online or from friends. One expert said attitudes are likely to change eventually, but only after children start dying again of diseases parents have come to think of as obsolete.”
Opinion: Autism's Cause Remains Mystery
San Angelo Standard Times (TX)
August 26, 2008
"While we are searching for the cause of autism, we want to continue to protect children from other diseases that we do know the cause of, specifically, vaccine preventable infections...Pediatricians want to make sure that parents do not rely on incorrect or incomplete information about the safety of vaccines when deciding to get vaccines."
Experts Plead with Parents to Vaccinate
San Diego Union-Tribune
August 24, 2008
“Parent Jeff Sternberg was against giving his boys all of the recommended vaccines in their first few years of life. Then his 4-month-old was accidentally exposed to measles...Baby Asher got vaccinated that night…Since then, Sternberg said, his philosophy about vaccines has changed…Yesterday, experts and parents including Sternberg talked about the importance of vaccination at a forum sponsored by the San Diego Immunization Coalition.”
Measles Returns
New York Times
August 24, 2008
“There has been an upsurge of measles cases in the United States, mostly because of parents’ misguided fears of vaccinations...Because it is so contagious, measles is one of the first diseases to reappear when immunization coverage declines. If confidence in all vaccines were to drop precipitously, many diseases would re-emerge and cause far more harm than could possibly result from vaccination.”
Vaccine Refusals Fuel Measles Outbreak
Reuters
August 21, 2008
"Parents refusing to have their children vaccinated against measles have helped drive cases of the illness to their worst levels in a dozen years in the United States, health officials reported on Thursday...Most of those infected were not vaccinated and there is no reason for any cases to occur when vaccines can prevent them, the CDC said in a weekly report on death and diseases."
Jump in Measles Outbreaks Worries Health Officials
Associated Press
August 21, 2008
“The number of measles cases in the U.S. is at its highest level since 1997, and nearly half of those involve children whose parents rejected vaccination, government health officials reported Thursday…Pediatricians are frustrated, saying they are having to spend more time convincing parents the shot is safe.”
Vaccinations Are a Health Care Achievement
Charlevoix Courier (MI)
August 19, 2008
“Editor: The development of vaccines to eradicate or drastically reduce many infectious diseases is truly a marvel of medical science...Vaccines are safe. They undergo more rigorous testing before being licensed than any other pharmaceutical product...Newer vaccines contain only a small part of the virus needed for immunity, so children actually receive fewer viral particles even though may get more shots.--Northwest Michigan Community Health Agency Medical Director Dr. Joshua R. Meyerson, Charlevoix"
Don’t Be Complacent About Vaccinations
Helena Independent Record (MT)
August 19, 2008
"I have wonderful memories of being a kindergarten student...Another strong memory of kindergarten is lying in my bed in a dark room for a long time (three weeks, I found out later) with the measles...Fortunately, because of effective immunizations, today many of us haven’t seen the ravages of polio or suffered a bad case of the measles...The 2008 measles outbreaks illustrate the risk created by diseases imported into unvaccinated populations and those who come in contact with them."
Vaccinate Kids
Grand Rapids Press (MI)
August 15, 2008
"Hundreds of children in Michigan become ill each year from diseases that could have been prevented...parents need to be reminded that children still suffer and die from preventable diseases. Childhood immunizations are a safe and effective way for them to protect their children from more than a dozen diseases such as mumps and whooping cough...Parents should talk to their family doctors before putting their children -- and other children -- at risk."
Do Your Part: Take the Shot
Miami Herald
August 18, 2008
"OUR OPINION: OPTING OUT OF IMMUNIZATION NOT A SMART MOVE….The best way to prevent communicable diseases is to immunize as many people as possible. This idea -- our communal safety net -- faces a growing threat as more and more people choose not be vaccinated..."
5 Myths about Childhood Vaccines
Lansing State Journal (MI)
August 14, 2008
"Do vaccines cause autism? Is it OK to skip certain vaccines? Consider the facts behind these and other myths about childhood vaccines. Childhood vaccines protect children from a range of serious diseases. Yet you may wonder about the benefits and risks of childhood vaccines. Consider common myths about childhood vaccines - and the facts behind the myths."
The Media's Addiction to Controversy can Seriously Damage Your Health
The Guardian (UK)
August 13, 2008
"...The media should not take all the blame for the decline in MMR uptake. Clearly, Wakefield takes most responsibility. The refusal of Tony and Cherie Blair to confirm their baby son Leo had been vaccinated was foolish. And you might say people don't take much notice of papers; after all, the vast majority still took their children for vaccination. But the MMR affair should be a salutary warning of where the media's uncertain grasp of scientific evidence and its addiction to controversy can lead."
A Vaccine That Can Save a Life
The Virginian-Pilot
August 13, 2008
"The photo of Gerald Pe, as stark and grim as practically any that a newspaper publishes, told perhaps more than the accompanying story: Parts of both feet are missing. His legs are disfigured. His skin appears discolored. It took courage for Pe, now 20, to allow himself to be photographed. The Virginia Beach man did it to alert college students to vaccinate themselves against meningitis, an often-overlooked infection that can have ghastly results."
It's Amanda's World
Gotham Magazine
August 2008
Amanda Peet discusses the "Vaccinate Your Baby" campaign with Gotham Magazine.
Measles Report: Why We Still Need Vaccines
MinnPost.com (MN)
August 8, 2008
"On Wednesday, the Minnesota Department of Health reported that a 10-month-old child in Hennepin County had been diagnosed with measles...Like the 10-month-old sickened in Hennepin County, almost all of the national cases involved patients who were either unvaccinated or weren't sure they had been vaccinated."
Avera Medical Minute: Importance of Vaccinations
KSFY-TV (SD)
August 6, 2008
"Dr. Kara Bruning, a pediatrician at the Main McGreevy Clinic Avera, talks about the importance of vaccinations...Actress Jenny McCarthy is leading the charge encouraging all of you not to immunize your child because it causes autism. Main McGreevy Clinic Avera Pediatrician Dr. Kara Bruning says that's very dangerous advice. Advice, she says, you shouldn't take from people in Hollywood...And information, the RIGHT information, is what Dr. Kara Bruning wants you to be armed with."
Opinion: Overcoming My Fear of Vaccinations
Lansing State Journal (MI)
August 6, 2008
"Jackson wasn't very happy with his Mom and Dad last Friday. Instead of getting him a new outfit or toy to celebrate turning 2 months old, we took him to the doctor's office for a checkup and for his first round of immunizations..."
X-Files Actress on Vaccines: Ignore the Stars
ABC News
August 5, 2008
"Actress Amanda Peet is not the first celebrity to speak out on childhood vaccination. But her message is clearly different from that of many other stars on the subject. And on Tuesday morning, she shared this advice with the public on ABC's 'Good Morning America': the public might be better off to turn a deaf ear to celebrities when it comes to vaccines...Don't listen to actors. Go to the experts.'""
Peet Heads Campaign Urging Vaccinations for Kids
WCBS-TV (NY)
August 5, 2008
"It's a decision many parents struggle with: whether or not to vaccinate their children. Several celebrities with autistic children have cautioned against immunizations, but on Tuesday another Hollywood name helped kick off a campaign encouraging parents to vaccinate. Beginning Tuesday, actress Amanda Peet will be starring in public service announcements for the 'Vaccinate Your Baby' campaign."
Quelling a Killer: The Case for the Meningococcal Vaccine
Wall Street Journal
August 5, 2008
"The stories sound chillingly similar. A healthy teenager comes down with what seems like the flu, then gets rapidly weaker, spikes a high fever, starts vomiting and breaks out in a rash. By the time he or she gets to the hospital, infection is overwhelming the body's defenses and shutting down vital organs...The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now recommends Menactra for all 11-to- 18-year-olds. As of 2006, however, only 12% of those eligible had received the vaccine."
Don't wait to vaccinate
Daily Democrat (CA)
August 1, 2008
"With summer vacation nearing an end, August is the perfect time to remind family, friends and neighbors about the importance of protecting children from vaccine-preventable diseases. Immunizations are vital, especially for young children most vulnerable to infection."
Fear of Vaccines Unwarranted; Health Scares Not Proven
Metro Magazine (NC)
August 1, 2008
"How to deal with parental fears? That's the $64 question," said Dr. Samuel Katz, 81, a pioneer in the development of vaccines and related research since the days when polio ravaged so many people across the United States. He also is dean emeritus of the pediatric school at Duke University.
His most important response: 'You must have faith and trust in your physician.'
Dr. John Rusher of Raleigh Pediatrics who attended medical school at UNC-Chapel Hill agrees.
'That's what I tell parents all the time. We are not here to cause disease. We are looking for ways to prevent disease.'"
