HPV Vaccine Mandated for All 10-Year-Old Girls in Costa Rica
In October 2017, the government of Costa Rica added the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to the country’s national vaccination program. The decision to do so was based on the recommendation of the Costa Rican Ministry of Health’s National Commission on Vaccination and Epidemiology (CNVE), which is the Costa Rican government’s equivalent of the U.S. Centers […]
New York Bill Removing Religious Vaccine Exemption Turned Into Law on One Day with No Public Hearings
On June 13, 2019, the New York legislature quickly pushed a bill (A2371) to repeal the religious exemption to vaccination through both the Assembly and Senate in one day with no public hearings.1 The unprecedented legislative coup, which cut the citizens of New York out of participating in the law making process, culminated in the […]
Should Children Be Banned from School if They Don’t Have the Measles Vaccine?
Now, as the number of people receiving MMR vaccinations has dropped for the fourth year, despite the number of cases trebling in 2018, [British] Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said that he wouldn’t rule out the option of banning children from school if they were unvaccinated. But is it fair for children to miss out […]
Texas Legislator Calls Out Dr. Hotez for Attacking Parental Rights
On May 7, 2019, there was a short exchange of tweets on Twitter between pediatrician Peter Hotez, MD, PhD and Rep. Jonathan Strickland of the Texas House of Representatives. Dr. Hotez wrote: New exemption numbers tell much of the story. I’ll tell the rest: Children of have been placed in harm’s way for the financial […]
CDC: “Measles Elimination Status” Could End in U.S.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned on May 30, 2019 that, if the current measles outbreak continues, the U.S. could lose its measles elimination status that has been in effect since 2000. According to the agency: “If these outbreaks continue through summer and fall, the United States may lose its measles elimination […]
Another MMR Failure With Mumps Outbreak in Florida
An outbreak of mumps in 12 fully vaccinated students attending University of Florida, Gainesville campus had county health officials scratching their heads at the end of May. According to one media report, an Alachua County Health Department spokesperson said, “These things do happen. It’s a phenomenon that’s not completely understood,” and reassured students and the […]