The HealthCare Institute of New Jersey (HINJ), the leading voice for the state’s world-class life sciences sector, issued a strong defense of immunization science on Monday following a landmark announcement by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to reduce the number of recommended childhood vaccines.
The CDC’s overhaul, which takes effect immediately, narrows the federal recommendation from 17 target diseases down to 11. Key changes include moving vaccines for influenza, COVID-19, rotavirus, and hepatitis A and B into a “shared clinical decision-making” category, meaning they are no longer universally recommended for all children but remain available for high-risk groups or upon parental request.
In a statement released, Chrissy Buteas, president and CEO of HINJ, emphasized that vaccines remain a “critical pillar” of global stability and public health.
“Vaccines have been used for hundreds of years and have become one of the most critical pillars of our modern public health system, keeping people – and especially children – healthy and alive,” Buteas stated. “Epidemics and pandemics that used to devastate entire countries… have been tamed or even eliminated due to the fact-based science behind vaccination schedules.”
New Jersey, often referred to as the “Medicine Chest of the World,” is home to many of the biopharmaceutical companies that researched and developed the very vaccines being debated. Buteas highlighted that the state’s life sciences industry has led this defense against viral and bacterial threats for over a century.
The HINJ statement underscores the industry’s commitment to educating both patients and policymakers on the cost-effectiveness of vaccination. According to HINJ, vaccines represent one of the “easiest and least expensive” ways to defend against deadly infections, preventing the massive economic and societal costs associated with disease outbreaks.
