Dr. Tom Frieden

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ACIP Votes to End Universal Hepatitis B Vaccination If implemented, this change would put millions of children at greater risk of liver damage, cancer and early death—for no good reason

We have a safe vaccine that's proven its worth over three decades. We have a strategy that works. Now obstetricians, pediatricians, insurers, state health departments & others should stand up for fact-based care, protect our children and not mess with success.

We must keep protecting our children.

The ACIP should keep ideological, dangerous ideas away from the protection of our children.

Targeted vaccination for hepatitis B, which is what was recommended today, is a strategy that has been tried, and it has failed. Since universal vaccination, infection rates have decreased by as much as 99%.

We have a safe vaccine and a strategy that has worked. I encourage people to seek information on hepatitis B and other childhood vaccines from reliable sources such as the American Academy of Pediatrics.

I have seen firsthand the devastating impact of hepatitis B. There's no good reason to leave our children unprotected from this deadly and debilitating disease.

Even with proper screening, pregnant women can contract the infection later in pregnancy. For infants born to mothers in these situations, the birth dose is their only protection against an infection that could kill them.

The hepatitis B virus can survive for a week on surfaces and can spread through household and other close contact; 1/4 of infections among children occur through transmission other than from the mother, and up to 14% of pregnant women in the U.S. don’t receive the recommended hepatitis B screening.

Now obstetricians, pediatricians, insurers, state health departments and others should stand up for fact-based care, protect our children, and not mess with success — not accept this misguided and dangerous recommendation.

The ACIP recommendation to end the universal birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine puts millions of American children at greater risk of liver damage, cancer and early death.

I’ll be hosting an “ask me anything” session on Reddit this afternoon at 2pm ET. AMA about the future of public health. We’re facing tremendous headwinds, but there are still areas where we can make health progress.

Rebuilding in Challenging Times: UHF Hosts Public Health Fireside Chat with Dr. Tom Frieden | United Hospital Fund Dr. Tom Frieden’s prescription for today’s toughest health challenges, and other lessons from his 40-year career, were shared during a fireside chat with UHF President and CEO Oxiris Barbot, MD.

UHF's fireside chat on public health with @drtomfrieden.bsky.social and UHF President & CEO Oxiris Barbot, MD included prescriptions for today’s toughest health challenges, & other lessons from Dr. Frieden's 40-year career.

Find a recap of the discussion here:
uhfnyc.org/news/article...

Promotional graphic for a signing with former CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden at the MIT Press Bookstore. Details for the event: December 2 from 4:30 to 5:30 pm at 314 Main St, Cambridge MA. For questions, contact books@mit.edu

We're celebrating "The Formula for Better Health" tomorrow at the MIT Press Bookstore! Stop by Kendall Square's underground bookstore for a book signing with author @drtomfrieden.bsky.social: mitpressbookstore.mit.edu/event/2025-1...

Later this week, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) will discuss ending universal hepatitis B vaccination at birth in the United States. If this change is enacted, it will have deadly consequences for our children.

Walt Dowdle's Pledge: Five Principles That Still Define Public Health Excellence Walt Dowdle died on November 17, 2025. He was 94.

Walt Dowdle led CDC during crises. He fought for AIDS funding when the Reagan administration was in denial about the epidemic. He helped in global polio eradication. He built laboratories that became models for the world. But these five principles might be an even bigger contribution.

Flu shots aren’t perfect, but they are by far the best way to prevent flu, reduce its severity and avoid complications. That’s why I get the shot every year and make sure my family does as well. If you haven’t gotten this season’s shot yet, make an appointment or talk to your doctor today.

The Plain Truth About Vaccines and Autism We respect families not by perpetuating recycled myths, but by pursuing real science and better care.

Vaccines save lives. Sowing distrust in them puts our children’s health at risk. If you’d like to learn more, I wrote about this subject in August: tomfrieden.substack.com/p/the-plain-...

For more than two decades, scientists have studied whether vaccines cause autism. The answer has been consistent: there’s no evidence they do.

I compiled a list of 14 studies, covering more than 10 million children, that find no link between vaccines and autism.

Ignoring decades of evidence when making health recommendations not only endangers our children’s health, it also detracts from the important work of better understanding autism and supporting people with autism and their families.

Dozens of studies, tracking the health of more than 10 million children, have consistently shown no association between any vaccine, vaccine component, or vaccine schedule with autism.

Sowing distrust in vaccines puts the lives of American children at risk. The plain truth is that there is no evidence that vaccines cause autism. For more than two decades, scientists have studied whether vaccines cause autism.

Changing the basic scientific functioning of the CDC undermines the safety of our children. The post on the CDC website is a dangerous and unprecedented departure from the CDC’s longstanding commitment to communicating evidence-based public health information.

The Simple Formula for a Longer, Healthier Life Author Tom Frieden shares 5 key insights from his new book, The Formula for Better Health: How to Save Millions of Lives--Including Your Own.

We can do a lot more to avoid the most dangerous and fatal health conditions than we think. In a Next Big Idea Club Book Bite, @drtomfrieden.bsky.social sorts out facts from hype with five key insights from his new book "The Formula for Better Health":

Essay | The Simple Steps That Can Prevent Dementia My grandmother was terrified of losing her memory, but in the end she did. Here’s what could have helped her—and can help you.

The Simple Steps That Can Prevent Dementia www.wsj.com/health/welln... by @drtomfrieden.bsky.social via @wsj.com

#Alzheimers #dementia #health #wellness #publichealth

The U.S. Is Dismantling the Systems That Keep Us Safe States and cities offer a way forward for public health

I’ll never forget my first few weeks as CDC director. It was in the midst of the H1N1 epidemic and we needed to manage the outbreak effectively. I was grateful to walk into a building of public health experts and a full team of support.

Sadly, more than 1 in 4 of them are no longer in place today.

The disaster at the CDC, explained by its former boss The CDC has lost one-third of its staff this year. What now?

I talked with @drtomfrieden.bsky.social about what's happening at the CDC:

www.vox.com/today-explai...

The Beatings at CDC Will Continue Until Morale Improves Russell Vought’s War on Scientific Truth

Attacks on science and public health put all of us at greater risk. Dr. Tom Farley describes how destructive actions by the administration are hampering CDC’s ability to function.

How Alice Hamilton helped the world see a hidden poison Alice Hamilton exposed the dangers of lead poisoning, a lesson that still guides today’s fight against hidden environmental toxins.

Physician Alice Hamilton fought tirelessly to remove lead from workplaces, urging the U.S. government to ban lead from gasoline. Her warnings were ignored. Through her story, Dr. Tom Frieden illustrates what public health needs to help others see & act on invisible toxins. Read at @bigthink.com:

Every American wants to be safer and healthier. The administration's assault on public health makes us less so. When the next crisis comes, we will have lost precious time, talent, and capacity to respond.

This comes after previous cuts to lifesaving environmental health, chronic disease, and tobacco programs, which address the leading causes of death in the U.S.