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medpundit |
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Monday, October 21, 2002"If we were to have, say, 10 deaths, I am concerned not only that it would impugn the smallpox program but all the immunization and vaccination programs," Levin said. "They are really the flower of medical science in this country and the whole thing could be affected." If citizens suffer complications from smallpox vaccine even after choosing to take it, "trust me, they'll blame us," said Bonnie M. Word, a committee member and pediatrician in private practice in New Jersey. "They'll blame the government." This really isn’t a justified fear. As long as people are told of the risk, they aren’t likely to blame the government or the medical profession. It’s when we blithely tell people that things are safe and then discover their life-threatening adverse effects, that we get blamed. It happened not too long ago with the rotavirus vaccine. It was the Advisory Panel on Immunization Practices who recommended the rotavirus vaccine be given to everyone, and who vouched for its safety. Could it be that they’re gun-shy from that experience? But smallpox vaccine isn’t the same at all. It was used for years, so we’re quite knowledgable about its adverse effects. The fact that isn’t licensed by the FDA is a caution that everyone opposed to it keeps bringing up, but it isn’t licensed because its license lapsed when it was discontinued. It’s still the same vaccine. This licensing issue is a red herring, and it isn’t at all the same issue that it would be for a new never-before-used vaccine. posted by Sydney on 10/21/2002 05:59:00 AM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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