WASHINGTON (TNND) — Right now, there’s a major shift in U.S. vaccine policy, with a new focus on science, transparency, and child safety.
The CDC’s vaccine advisory committee has voted to end the universal hepatitis B shot for newborns when mothers test negative for the virus, a move supporters say is about restoring public trust and putting kids first.
Dr. Kirk Milhoan, a pediatric cardiologist senior fellow with the Independent Medical Alliance, and the newly appointed chair of the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee, said safety is the key.
“In order to be able to test safety and look at safety, you have to specifically design studies to look at safety,” Milhoan said during an interview with The National News Desk’s Angela Brown on Tuesday. “And Safety is a subjective term, so what we would prefer to talk about is risk. What is the risk of the disease? What is the risk of the preventative treatment of, let’s say, a vaccine. And is that individualized to the patient.”
Milhoan said has been a “one size fits all” approach in the past. He said that needs to shift to what is best for each individual patient.
“This ‘one size fits all’ was putting people at risk who really had no risk from a disease,” he said. “And so that is where you see the change in our attitude. It’s really trying to bring back the balance to the doctor-patient relationship and what is best for the patient.”
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For more, watch the video player above or visit The National News Desk’s YouTube channel for Brown’s full interview with Milhoan.
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