Vaccine decision ahead.(Brief Article)

2002 JUL 10 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The question carries critical weight in the new age of bioterrorism: Who should have access to vaccine against deadly smallpox?

The killer has not infected a human in more than two decades, and the U.S. government's current policy is to vaccinate only the handful of lab workers and scientists who work with the virus in high-security laboratories.

But September 11 and the anthrax attacks heightened fears that terrorists could somehow get their hands on smallpox and release it, potentially killing thousands of people.

A panel of 15 health experts met in Atlanta, Georgia, the week of June 17, 2002, to debate whether to expand the vaccinations - and then decide who would be included. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which sets vaccine policy, was expected to make a decision by June 20. The panel's recommendation will go to Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson.

In rare cases, the vaccine itself causes devastating side effects - including brain damage and even death. If every American were vaccinated, hundreds of people could die from side effects.

"I would not give that vaccine to my children now," said Dr. Paul Offit, a member of the panel and chief of infectious diseases at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

At a smallpox conference June 15, 2002, in Washington, DC, Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief of infectious diseases at the National Institutes of Health, told scientists and health officials the vaccine is one of the least safe around, although clearly a lifesaver if smallpox makes a comeback.