“Federal vaccine advisers voted to withdraw the universal birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine, a decision the AAP said will harm children. Under the new recommendation, infants whose mothers test negative would not be explicitly recommended for vaccination but could get vaccinated if their parents chose to do so after shared clinical decision- making. ‘This irresponsible and purposely misleading guidance will lead to more hepatitis B infections in infants and children,’ AAP President Susan J. Kressly, M.D., FAAP, said in a statement. ‘I want to reassure parents and clinicians that there is no new or concerning information about the hepatitis B vaccine that is prompting this change, nor has children’s risk of contracting hepatitis B changed.'”

I agree with Dr. Kressly and the AAP which “continues to recommend giving newborns a dose of hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth with additional doses at 1-2 months and 6-18 months.”

The children who would be at greatest risk from this new recommendation are those whose families have barriers to consistent prenatal and postnatal care. It is an unfortunate reality when opinions are trusted more than science and “experts” from the new ACIP committee compare our Country to those with Universal health care. If anyone has additional questions about the data that supports Hepatitis B vaccine administration at birth or how delaying this can be dangerous, please reach out to your clinician with any questions.

Dr. Iesha Draper, Asst. Medical Director, Pediatrician

Dr. Melissa Tepe, VP, Chief Medical Officer