A key government advisory committee voted Friday to postpone a vote on whether to delay infants’ first hepatitis B vaccine, temporarily alleviating fears that a new recommendation on shot timing could reverse the significant progress made in controlling the disease’s spread in recent decades.
The decision followed a lengthy deliberation on Thursday by the newly reconstituted Advisory Committee on Immunization Practice, which pressed scientists from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on the necessity of the birth dose, and brought into question the veracity of the data presented on the risks and benefits of the vaccine. However, members ultimately voted to push the vote. This postponement reflects ongoing concerns within the regulatory community regarding vaccine timing and its implications for public health, highlighting the need for robust data to support any changes in immunization schedules.
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