Pediatrics Academy Stands Firm In Opposing Nonmedical Vax Exemptions
The American Academy of Pediatrics maintains that schools and day cares must require proof of vaccinations for children to attend. Just five states have laws that accept only medical exemptions. Meanwhile, HHS Secretary RFK Jr. repeats false vaccine claims at a meeting with governors.
MedPage Today:
End Non-Medical Vaccine Exemptions, AAP Says
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) on Monday reaffirmed its support for ending nonmedical vaccine exemptions for daycare and school attendance in the U.S. In an updated policy statement in Pediatrics, AAP reiterated its support for laws and regulatory measures that require certification of immunization for attending child care and school, along with support for medical exemptions for specific vaccines, as determined for individual children, according to authors led by Jesse Hackell, MD, of New York Medical College in Valhalla and chair of AAP's Committee on Pediatric Workforce. (Henderson, 7/28)
Colorado Newsline:
RFK Jr. Repeats False Vaccine Claims In Meeting With Governors In Colorado Springs
Governors from across the country played host to a variety of health conspiracy theories in Colorado Springs on Saturday, as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. expounded on his “Make America Healthy Again” initiative in a fireside chat. With Republican Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee moderating, Kennedy repeated a litany of false and misleading claims, including assertions that aluminum in vaccines causes food allergies and that diabetes can be cured through diet, to about a dozen governors gathered together for their National Governors Association summer meeting. (Fraieli, 7/26)
On the covid vaccine —
The Washington Times:
Stanford-Led Study Finds COVID Vaccines Saved Far Fewer Lives Than Previously Reported
A Stanford University-led study estimates that COVID-19 vaccinations saved 2.5 million lives from 2020 to 2024, about 17 million fewer than earlier reports suggested, primarily among older adults. That’s the equivalent of one death averted for every 5,400 vaccine doses administered worldwide during the period, according to the findings published Friday in JAMA Health Forum. Official estimates say 7 million people died from the virus worldwide in those years. (Salai, 7/25)
Los Angeles Times:
COVID Rising In California. How Bad Will This Summer Be?
COVID-19 is once again on the rise in California. It remains to be seen whether this latest uptick foreshadows the sort of misery seen last year — when the state was walloped by its worst summertime surge since 2022 — or proves fleeting. But officials and experts say it’s nevertheless a reminder of the seasonal potency of the still-circulating virus. “We are definitely are seeing an uptick in the summer,” Dr. Erica Pan, director of the California Department of Public Health and the state health officer, said during a recent webinar. (Lin II, 7/28)
On vaccine innovations —
ScienceAlert:
New Kind Of Dental Floss Could Replace Vaccine Needles, Study Finds
A fear of needles is a common reason for avoiding vaccines, even among many adults. Now researchers have come up with a rather clever alternative: dental floss. Led by a team from Texas Tech University, the researchers first identified an often overlooked surface in the mouth as an entry point for vaccines: the junctional epithelium (JE), which sits where the gums meet the teeth. (Nield, 7/28)
The New York Times:
William J. Rutter, Biotech Pioneer Of Gene-Based Medicine, Dies At 97
William J. Rutter, a scientist who helped create the modern biotechnology industry as a founder of a company that turned breakthroughs from academic labs into commercial medicines, including the first genetically engineered vaccine and a therapy for multiple sclerosis, died on July 11 at his home in San Francisco. He was 97. His daughter, Cindy Rutter, said the cause was complications of urothelial carcinoma, a cancer of the urinary system. (Gabriel, 7/27)
