Today the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted to end the decades-long recommendation to vaccinate all healthy newborns against hepatitis B. This harmful decision, based on unproven claims of safety risks, will undoubtedly lead to an increase in hepatitis B infections in infants and children. Family physicians know that the hepatitis B vaccine plays an essential role in protecting newborns against an infection that can lead to chronic disease and serious complications later in life. AAFP’s childhood vaccine schedule has remained unchanged, recommending the first hepatitis B dose at birth.
The CAFP, along with the broader medical and scientific community, strongly supports maintaining universal Hep B vaccination at birth, and calls on the CDC to ensure this life-saving protection remains the standard of care. In October, California passed a new law that protects the state’s vaccine recommendations against unfounded or problematic changes made by ACIP, preserving evidence-based vaccine recommendations for all Californians. CAFP will continue to ensure family physicians are a part of California’s efforts to ensure access to vaccines and evidence-based information about vaccines.
