Vaccines are safe

Measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus, you name it – vaccines are safe, despite what social media would have you believe. But don’t believe me; believe some people who know.

In an extraordinary, if not unprecedented event, the three presidents of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine released a joint statement on March 8 supporting vaccination.

If you don’t know, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) was created in 1863 during the Civil War. It established the National Research Council in 1916 at the request of President Wilson to provide advice to the government in times of war and peace. National Academies of Engineering and Medicine were included under the NAS charter toward the end of last century.

Members of these academies are elected in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. Membership is widely accepted as a mark of excellence in sciences. It is considered one of the highest honors a scientist can achieve.

So what did the presidents of this distinguished group of scientists say about vaccination? Here are some quotations:

“The current measles outbreaks in the United States and elsewhere are being fueled by misinformation about the safety of vaccines.” To help counter such misinformation, they created a website to provide clear, concise, evidence-based answers to questions about vaccine safety and other commonly asked questions about health and science. Their joint conclusion?

"Our work has validated that the science is clear – vaccines are extremely safe."

--Pete Haug, Colfax