#62 March/April 2003
The Washington Free Press Washington's Independent Journal of News, Ideas & Culture
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Silent Blue Angels
essay by Signe Drake

Spy Agency Busts Union
Federal employees no longer entitled to union representation
by Brian Frielb

What's the Hangup with Solar Energy?
Rapid conversion is possible in Washington
opinion by Martin Nix

The Rubber Ducky Dilemma
Keep Ernie happy: explain the Defective Ducky Dilemma and win a free subscription
by Doug Collins

American Newspeak
word collisions by Wayne Grytting

Answers to last issue's 'Great American Newspeak Quiz'
by Wayne Grytting

Bayer, Monsanto Poison Norway
from CBG network

Poisoning Ourselves
Toxic waste in fertilizer
by Rodger Herbst

Urban Runoff Killing Washington Salmon
by J.R. Pegg, ENS

Population, Grain, Windmills...
Twelve Ways to Tell if the Earth is Healthy
by Earth Policy Institute

The Shell Game
Environmental Laws of Mass Destruction
opinion by Rodger Herbst

Fuel-Cell Cars to Arrive Soon
by Bernie Fischlowitz-Roberts, Earth Policy Institute

Russian Big Oil Redraws Pipe Dream
by Rory Cox

Hepatitis B: Rare, and Not Very Contagious
by Barbara Loe Fisher, co-founder and president, National Vaccine Information Center

'Iraq was not responsible for 9/11'
excerpts from a speech by Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio)

WA Peace Team visits Baghdad
by Gary Engbrecht

Waiting for the Missiles
Prospect of US Bombs Terrorizes Iraqis
by Norman Solomon

A Louder Call to Action
In Shifting Sands: The Truth About UNSCOM and the Disarming of Iraq
Directed by Scott Ritter
film review by Bob Hicks

'Democracy U' Video Series Available

Members First
Service Employees union local has its first contested election in anyone's memory
opinion by Brian King

SICK LEAVE Relief

Mexico Controversy Dominates Costco Meeting
from Community Alliance for Global Justice

Pasco Ordinance Bars Services for Low-Income Community
from Washington ACLU

Public NEEDS Sensible Hepatitis B Vaccine Policies
opinion by Doug Collins

Seattle Poster Ban Still Not Clear

Hepatitis B: Rare, and Not Very Contagious

So why are we mass-vaccinating newborns?

by Barbara Loe Fisher, co-founder and president, National Vaccine Information Center

Excerpted with permission from "Shots in the Dark"

The hepatitis B vaccine is mandated for infants in the US and many other countries. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends a series of hep B immunizations starting at birth, with the aim of preventing mother-to-child transmission. But unlike other infectious diseases for which vaccines have been mandated, hepatitis B is very rare in childhood and is not even highly contagious. Hepatitis B is primarily an adult disease usually transmitted by blood contact. It is prevalent only in high-risk populations such as needle-sharing drug addicts and sexually promiscuous adults. According to Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine (1994), mother to child transmission of hepatitis B "is uncommon in North America and western Europe." Although CDC officials have made statements that hepatitis B is easy to catch through sharing toothbrushes or razors, Eric Mast, M.D., Chief of the Surveillance Section, Hepatitis Branch of the CDC, stated in a 1997 public hearing that: "although [the hepatitis B virus] is present in moderate concentrations in saliva, it's not transmitted commonly by casual contact."

Not Even A Killer Disease For Most

According to Harrison's, in cases of acute hepatitis B "most patients do not require hospital care" and "95 percent of patients have a favorable course and recover completely" with the case-fatality ratio being "very low (approximately 0.1 percent)." Those who recover completely from hepatitis B infection acquire life-long immunity. Of those who do not recover completely, fewer than 5 percent become chronic carriers of the virus with just one quarter of these in danger of developing life threatening liver disease later in life, according to Robbins Pathologic Basis of Disease (1994), a medical textbook. The Guide to Clinical Preventive Services (1996), written under the supervision of the US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), states that the risk of developing a chronic hepatitis B infection is higher in infected infants than in infected older children and adults: "Infections during infancy, while estimated to represent only 1-3 percent of cases, account for 20-30 percent of chronic infections." Because infants born to infected mothers are at highest risk for developing chronic hepatitis B infections, routine screening of pregnant women for hepatitis B infection is one of the most important public health measures that can be taken to prevent chronic hepatitis B carriers. The Merck Manual (1992), a major medical reference used by physicians, notes that "postexposure vaccination is recommended for newborn infants of hepatitis B positive mothers."

Hepatitis B Low In US

North America and western Europe have always had among the lowest rates of hepatitis B disease in the world (0.1 to 0.5 percent of the general population) compared to countries in the Far East and Africa, where the disease affects 5-20 percent or more of the population. According to Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, in the US "the greatest reported incidence [of hep B] occurs in adults aged 20-39" and "the number of cases peaked in 1985 and has shown a continuous gradual decline since that time." In 1991, there were 18,003 cases of hepatitis B reported in the US out of a total US population of 248 million. According to the October 31, 1997 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report published by the CDC, in 1996 there were 10,637 cases of hepatitis B reported in the US with 279 cases reported in children under the age of 14.

For further info, see the National Vaccine Information Center website at www.909shot.com



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