The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will meet Thursday to discuss changing the recommended vaccine schedule for the birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine.
The shot provides immediate antibodies to help prevent transmission of hepatitis B. Currently, the CDC recommends that nearly all newborns receive the vaccine as a routine shot.
Current guidance calls for a three-shot series with doses given within 24 hours of birth, at 1 to 2 months, and at 6 to 18 months.
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If the panel approves the changes, CDC guidance would shift to “individual-based decision-making,” advising parents to first consult their health care provider before vaccinating. Vaccine advocates say such a change could delay when infants receive their first dose.
If parents choose not to give the birth dose, the first dose would be administered after an infant is 2 months old.
The ACIP provides the federal government with guidance on vaccines.
Earlier this year, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appointed new members to the remade board after firing all 17 members of the panel.
The vote comes just days after the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy released findings showing that delaying the birth dose would lead to increased hepatitis B infections.
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“After extensive review, we did not discover safety or effectiveness data that support delaying the choice parents have to vaccinate their newborns against hepatitis B,” CIDRAP Director Michael T. Osterholm said in a news release. “Instead, it showed that a delay will needlessly endanger the health of America’s children, putting more of them at risk of HBV infection. The evidence clearly indicates that ACIP members should vote no against a change to the current recommendation.”
Additionally, data from the Center for Disease Analysis Foundation suggest that delaying the birth dose of the vaccine would result in 99,000 preventable hepatitis B infections.
Researchers also found no benefit to delaying the vaccine.
Hepatitis B can cause symptoms such as nausea, stomach pain, fever, joint pain, and vomiting. Symptoms generally last a few weeks but can persist for up to six months.
The illness’s symptoms generally occur months after exposure.
Chronic hepatitis B can cause liver damage later in life, which can lead to severe complications. The World Health Organization says the shot is nearly 100 percent effective against the virus.
Common side effects from the vaccine include pain where the shot was given, headache, fever, fatigue, irritability, and vomiting. These symptoms generally last up to two days.
