Vaccine Crisis

National Infant Immunization Week is a good time to raise awareness about the importance of vaccinating our kids, including some of the key messages of the CDC, like that:

• Vaccines are among the most successful and cost-effective public health tools available for preventing disease and death.
• Immunizations are one of the most important ways parents can protect their children against serious diseases.
• We can now protect children from more vaccine preventable diseases than ever before.
• Children are far more likely to be harmed by serious infectious diseases than by immunization.
• Immunization protects families and communities. Children who are not immunized increase the chance that others will get the disease.

Although most parents are aware of these messages, many aren't aware of a new vaccine crisis that pediatricians are facing. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, 'the soaring costs of vaccines combined with lower reimbursements from insurance companies will lead to the under-immunization of the nation’s children and unnecessary outbreaks of preventable diseases.'

What's the problem? Mostly it is that Medicaid and private health plans barely pay pediatricians enough money to cover the cost of the vaccines they give, and don't cover the added expenses of ordering, storing, insuring, or actually giving the vaccine. And since pediatricians have to order many vaccines in advance and may not get paid for many months after they give the vaccine, this can add up to a very big expense for a pediatric office, especially with new vaccines like Gardasil costing over $100 a dose.

Why is it a crisis? Because pediatricians now face the risk of losing money when giving vaccines, some won't order or give the newer and more expensive vaccines, such as Gardasil, RotaTeq, Menactra, or ProQuad.

For more information:

• In Need of a Booster Shot; Rising Costs Make Doctors Balk at Giving Vaccines - New York Times
• Pediatricians Say Rising Vaccine Costs are Putting Children at Risk
• Pediatricians Voice Anger Over Costs of Vaccines - New York Times
• AAP - AMA Immunization Congress draws up solutions to vaccine financing, access issues

_{Photo courtesy of the CDC}