As of yesterday we have returned to pre-1991 in terms of Hep B vaccination recommendations for newborns. The ACIP committee voted 8-Yes 3-No to change from having a universal birth dose of Hep B recommended for newborns. Now, if the mother is Hep B negative, parents can decide to access the vaccine through shared clinical decision making.

To be clear though — even with a universal recommendation parents have always have the choice AND the ability to decline it. This doesn't increase choice. Choice already existed.

Instead this risks babies slipping through the cracks and developing a chronic Hep B infection.

A second vote pertained to suggestion patients ask their providers about serology testing after a first Hep B vaccine before proceeding with further vaccination. 4 voted no. 1 abstained. 6 voted yes.

This is absurd because we don't know what antibody levels would justify not needing more doses or how long that protection would last. We give three doses to ensure protection longer term. It's also unclear what this vote does in practice as this isn't typical for ACIP.

A third vote happened to ensure that the vaccine for children's program guidelines matched vote one. This program provides vaccines to children whose family may not be able to afford them. The vote for this was pure chaos. Many members asked repeatedly what they were even voting for and the implications of their vote. 3 members abstained from voting because they couldn't see the voting language and didn't know what they voted for. Despite this, 8 members voted yes, so now matches vote one.

But yes, you read that right. Members of ACIP still didn't know exactly what they were voting on or the implications. It was embarrassing.

None of these things will make our children healthier.

Before all infants were recommended to be vaccinated there were 18,000 cases of Hep B in children under 10 annually, and half didn't know where they got it from! Vote 2 is not scientifically sound and makes no sense.

The rest of the meeting was full of lies pertaining to the childhood vaccine schedule. In short, our children deserve better. So much better.

If you’re interested in learning more about what transpired and why it was misleading or downright lies — you can use the link below to download a debunk brief that a group of us worked on over the last two days of the ACIP meeting. It was a Herculean effort and shows that we are all better when we work together