One hundred fify-four million. That’s how many lives global vaccines have saved over the last fifty years according to the World Health Organization (WHO) in April 2024. From thwarting the deadly spread of diseases like polio and measles, to more recently slowing the devastation of COVID-19, vaccines have often played a critical role in our society. But according to former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Advisory Committee member, Dr. Paul Offit, our access to vaccines, and health and safety by extension, could be in danger.
Offitt, who presided over the CDC’s committee on Immunization Practices, spoke to Ursinus students on February 11th, to share his concerns about the state of vaccination policy in the U.S. He believes that the current federal administration’s rhetoric surrounding vaccines in this country could prove fatal, with its effects already showing. “We had more pertussis (whooping cough) deaths than we’d had in years, the biggest measles epidemic in 30 years, and flu deaths were greater than the last flu epidemic,” Offit said. “It’s gotten bad, and it could only continue to get worse [under this administration].”
In the midst of a national health crisis, Offit, currently serving as the Director of the Vaccination Education Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, informed students about the importance of vaccines, while urging them to protect their right to vaccination.
“Science is a powerful thing to have on your side,” Offit said. “We need to stand up for science.”
A Seismic Shift in Vaccine Policy
The idea of opposition to vaccination is not new. ‘Anti-vax’ movements have existed for centuries, often spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories about the effects of the treatments. However, Offit pointed to the appointment of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to the position of U.S Secretary of Health and Human Services as a dangerous precedent, given his history of standing against vaccines and the role of the office. “He has, for 20 years, been an anti-vaccine activist, a science denialist, and a conspiracy theorist,” Offit said. The virology expert pointed to Kennedy and his administration’s views on vaccines as incredibly dangerous, immediately impacting the country’s efficacy against viral outbreaks. He claimed that Kennedy’s response to the measles outbreak was a testament to his ineptitude.
Kennedy, appearing on a Fox Nation Television show, told an audience that natural infections can boost “your immune system later in life against cancers, atopic diseases, cardiac disease, etc.” Offit pointed out that this claim is unproven, whereas the impacts of diseases like measles upon children is clear. “Measles can make you sick, and it can make you die,” Offit said in a rebuttal to Kennedy’s claims. “Between 1 to 3 children per 1000 will die due to the disease.”
According to Offit, this isn’t the only example of inflammatory remarks and questionable decisions by Kennedy regarding children contracting diseases. He pointed to the new policy regarding the COVID-19 vaccine as equally dangerous, taking away the requirement that children receive the vaccine. “The virus that causes COVID will likely circle around for centuries,” Offit said. “Absent a clear recommendation for children, parents might not vaccinate them, putting them at risk to be among thousands of young children who will be hospitalized with the disease each year.”
Dangerous Precedents for Adults
The spread of false information and questionable decisions hasn’t just affected children, however, in Offit’s eyes. He believes the rhetoric and decisions have begun to impact adults across the country as well, due to the stripping of resources. The current federal administration has dialed back support for mRNA vaccines, such as the COVID-19 vaccine, by cancelling $500 million in relevant funding. The administration has cited ‘the vaccine’s inability to “protect against upper respiratory infections,”’ as the reasoning for this change in support. Offit emphasized, however, that these vaccines were needed for the health of our nation.
“The goal of the COVID vaccine is to keep you out of the intensive care unit, not to stop mild disease,” Offit explained. He emphasized that COVID is a “short incubation period” infection, a type of disease “you’re never going to eliminate.”
“He doesn’t understand that we’re trying to keep people out of the hospital,” Offit said.
A Power Struggle
Through his various decisions and expressed beliefs, Offit views Kennedy as dangerous. He stressed, however, that this shouldn’t be a political issue. “Public health is always going to be political, due to the resources it requires,” he said. “But it doesn’t have to be partisan.”
The expert pointed to past instances, where both political parties have disagreed on vaccine decisions, as an example of the recent and disturbing polarization surrounding the treatments. “It used to be on the [far] left, there were concerns of ‘I want to be all natural, don’t inject me,’ and on the right it was a belief in less government intervention,” Offit said. “This recent politicalization of vaccines is new.”
It’s a movement that the doctor hopes can cease over the years. He believes that change must come from the commonfolk however, specifically parents. “I think parents, regardless of political affiliation, believe in vaccines,” Offit said. “The real question is, how much worse does this get before parents come in and say ‘enough is enough’?”
By receiving these vaccines, Offit believes we can help not just ourselves and our children, but society as a whole, reducing the risk of a deadly disease spreading. “We should care about our neighbors,” he said. “We should all benefit from society.”
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