Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Anti-Vax Families Consider Leaving California As State Mulls Bill Restricting Vaccine Medical Exemptions
Sacramento Bee: Vaccine Exemptions Targeted By California Bill
Orange County mom Michelle Sabino says her daughter experienced 16 seizures in two months after she was vaccinated for diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough when she was a baby. She’d never considered that vaccines could be dangerous. But after consulting with two physicians who both recommended brain scans, and a medical review of her family’s history and records, Sabino said she was shocked when a doctor said future vaccines could be “fatal.” A speech pathologist, Sabino now says she’s ready to quit her job and leave California to protect her daughter from a proposed law she fears would force her child to receive vaccines. (Wiley, 6/10)
Kaiser Health News: How Measles Detectives Work To Contain An Outbreak
On any given day, more than 4,000 people pass through the library at California State University-Los Angeles. On April 11, one of them had measles. The building has only one entrance, which means that anyone who entered or exited the library within two hours of that person’s visit potentially was exposed to one of the most contagious diseases on Earth. It’s the stuff of public health nightmares: Everyone at the library between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. that day had to be identified, warned and possibly quarantined. Measles is so contagious that up to 90% of people close to an infected person who are not protected by a vaccine or previous case of the disease will become infected. (Gold, 6/10)
The New York Times: Chickenpox Vaccine May Protect Against Shingles Years Later
The chickenpox vaccine not only protects against chickenpox: A new study has found it also lowers the risk for shingles. Shingles, sometimes called herpes zoster, is a painful nerve infection and rash that can occur after recovery from a case of chickenpox or after immunization with the vaccine. It is more common in older people and can occur decades after recovery from chickenpox, but children can get it, too. (Bakalar, 6/10)
Stat: When Kids Get The Chickenpox Vaccine, They're Less Likely To Get Shingles
Children who are vaccinated against the virus that causes chickenpox are getting a twofer: Not only are they protected against irritating and potentially scarring chickenpox, but they appear to have a “dramatically” lower risk of developing shingles in childhood than unvaccinated kids who contract the disease, according to a large, new multiyear study. The rate of shingles cases in vaccinated children was 78% lower than it was among unvaccinated children who had contracted the virus, varicella, the authors reported Monday in the journal Pediatrics. (Branswell, 6/10)
