"We live longer than we used to. During the twentieth century, the lifespan of Americans increased by thirty years. Much of the increase was caused by such advances as antibiotics, purified drinking water, sanitation, safer workplaces, better nutrition, safer foods, seatbelts, and a decline in smoking. But no single medical advance had a greater impact on human health than vaccines. Before vaccines, Americans could expect that every year measles would infect 4 million children and kill three thousand; diphtheria would kill fifteen thousand people, mostly teenagers; rubella (German measles) would cause twenty thousand babies to be born blind, deaf, or mentally retarded; pertussis (whooping cough) would kill eight thousand children, most of whom were less than one year old; and polio would permanently paralyze fifteen thousand children and kill one thousand. Because of vaccines most of these diseases have been completely or virtually eliminated from the United States. Smallpox—a disease estimated to have killed 500 million people—was eradicated by vaccines. Despite their success, vaccines are in trouble; only four companies now make them, and two of the four have severely reduced their vaccine research programs. The result has been an unrelenting series of vaccine shortages and a lack of hope that certain vaccines will ever be made. Recent examples show just how bad things have gotten: In 1998, the tetanus vaccine was in such short supply that its use was restricted to emergency rooms. Since 2000, a vaccine to prevent the most common cause of severe pneumonia, bloodstream infections, and meningitis in children (pneumococcus) has been available only intermittently. During these shortages, when the vaccine has been difficult or impossible to obtain, parents could only hope that their children weren’t among the thousands permanently harmed or killed by pneumococcus every year."
Maybe in the US but the supply up in Canada is fine and we are receiving new vaccines all the time.
ReplyDeleteIn the last few years we've had 3 new vaccines for RSV, an upgraded pneumococcal vaccine with another scheduled in the next few years. No shortage of tetanus here either.
The real issue is that we are victims of our own success and public outrage over lies and misinformation.
Consider - Modern and Pfizer managed to produce effective vaccines against CoVID that was easily manufactured and competitively priced. These vaccines saved millions of lives.
And what was the public's response? Crying about side effects. Sure those 999 people over there did fine but that 1 guy? He got weird side effects so it's a terrible vaccine! We're going to sue! We're going to defame! We're going to libel!
So if you're the head of a vaccine company you might just we wondering what the point is. Okay, you people don't like vaccines? You don't want the latest protection? Call us when your brains have rebooted.