I don’t know who needs to hear this but, Polio and Smallpox never reached natural herd immunity.
They were eradicated by vaccines. Our nation’s fight against diseases goes way back:
-In 1798 the Marine Health Service was established, the nation’s first public health agency. It provided hospital care for merchant seamen while protecting port cities against diseases such as smallpox, cholera, and yellow fever.
-In 1885 Louis Pasteur first used rabies vaccine in humans. Three years later, the Pasteur Institute was established as a rabies treatment center and an infectious diseases research and training institute.
-In 1893 city and state public health departments began mass production of diphtheria antitoxin. Three years later, cholera and typhoid vaccines were first developed.
-In 1902 the Biologics Control Act was formed, regulating vaccine and antitoxin producers, also required licensing and inspections of manufacturers.
-In 1906 the Pure Food and Drugs Act was formed, which prohibited interstate commerce in misbranded and adulterated foods, drinks, and drugs. Two years later, the first county health departments were formed.
-In 1914 the typhoid and rabies vaccines were first licensed.
-In 1928 the first iron lung was used to preserve breathing function in patients with severe polio.
-In 1937 an absorbed form of tetanus toxoid was licensed and the Division of Biologics Control was formed within the National Institute of Health, transferring to the FDA in 1972.
-In 1942 Hepatitis A and B viruses were first differentiated. That same year, influenza A/B vaccine was introduced to the Armed Forces Epidemiological Board, licensed in 1945 and, after WWII, used for civilians.
-In 1949 diphtheria and tetanus toxoids and pertussis (DTP) were licensed, and the last case of polio was reported in the US. However, in 1952 the worst recorded polio epidemic in US history occurred with 57,628 reported cases.
-In 1953 the yellow fever vaccine was first licensed.
-In 1955 the Polio Vaccination Assistance Act was enacted by Congress, the first federal involvement in immunization activities. It allowed Congress to allocate funds to the Communicable Disease Center (later the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) to help states and local communities acquire and administer vaccines.
-In 1961 oral polio vaccine types 1 and 2, developed by Dr. Albert Sabin, were licensed.
-In 1962 Pres. John F. Kennedy signed the Vaccination Assistance Act into law, allowing the CDC to support mass immunization campaigns and initiate maintenance programs. Oral polio vaccine type 3 was now licensed.
-In 1966 the World Health Assembly called for global smallpox eradication. The CDC announced the first national measles eradication campaign. Within two years, measles outbreaks had decreased by more than 90% compared with prevaccine-era levels.
-In 1967 the Global Smallpox Eradication Program was launched by WHO (World Health Organization)
-In 1973 the measles and mumps virus vaccine became licensed.
-In 1977 Joseph A. Califano Jr., Sec. of the Dept. of Health, Education, and Welfare (later Health and Human Services) launched the National Childhood Immunization Initiative intending to achieve 90% vaccination levels among all children.
-In 1980 the World Health Assembly certified the world free of naturally occurring smallpox.
Lots of nasty diseases out there. Luckily, we have scientists, doctors and organizations who work tirelessly in understanding, isolating, treating and eventually eradicating some of them. So why would some legislators in Concord want to reverse that trend?
Liberty Alliance and Young Americans for Liberty (YAL) member Rep. Michael Granger, R-Milton Mills, has proposed a repeal of the law that created the NH Vaccine Association. This organization helps the state purchase vaccines at low rates. Rep. Granger, the prime sponsor of this proposed legislation, was endorsed by the conservative, libertarian organization known as Americans for Prosperity (AFP) founded by the billionaire Koch brothers, the same Koch who donates to the advisory board of Project 2025.
The other proposed bill is sponsored by YAL member Rep. Kelley Potenza, R-Strafford, and if passed would end the requirement of children receiving vaccinations before entering public schools, such as diphtheria, mumps, pertussis, polio, rubella, rubeola and tetanus.
Rep. Potenza claims vaccines don’t prevent the transmission of disease therefore shouldn’t be a requirement. The CDC and other experts claim otherwise, noting they are vital for personal and public health. Hard to believe but there currently are communities in the country that have such low polio vaccination rates, there is now a real possibility of a resurgence of polio in the U.S.
Why would some New Hampshire legislators want to willingly expose young children to diseases that can either be prevented or have the symptoms weakened?