In the 1970s, fears that whooping-cough vaccine might cause brain damage led to a decline in vaccine cover and an increase in outbreaks of the disease.
As of Tuesday, the state has recorded more illnesses due to whooping cough -- 4, 017 -- than in any year since 1955, the department said.
Here are some facts: pre-vaccination, whooping cough caused 9000 deaths per year in the U.S. Post-vaccine, this has dropped to 20 deaths per year.
FORBES: The 'Baltimore Sun' Sinks Deep Into Anti-Vaccination Quicksand
So we can thank NVIC and other anti-vaccine groups, such as Generation Rescue (which claims, among many other mistaken notions, t hat the pertussis vaccine causes autism), for the re-emergence of whooping cough.
And make no mistake about it: if measles, whooping cough, polio, and other vaccine-preventable diseases return, children will die.
FORBES: The 'Baltimore Sun' Sinks Deep Into Anti-Vaccination Quicksand
This describes the 2010 whooping cough epidemic in California, largely caused by anti-vaxxers, much like the more recent measles outbreak.
Over the past seven years the price for the standard five-germ inoculation (including diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough) has dropped 40%.
Offering the jab to pregnant women between 28-38 weeks gestation will boost maternal antibodies against whooping cough and allow these to be passed to the unborn baby, giving them protection in the crucial first weeks of life.
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation - whose recommendations apply across the UK - has been considering how to deal with the resurgence of whooping cough.
"If you've ever seen a child with pertussis, you won't forget it" -- that's how the American Academy of Pediatrics explains what whooping cough is on its website.
Many doctors believe parents' fears about vaccines -- brought on by the Wakefield article and other non-scientific information -- has lead to a resurgence of diseases like measles and Pertussis or Whooping Cough.
CNN: Opting out of vaccinations could get tougher in California
According to Forbes contributor Steven Salzberg, a whooping cough epidemic in California that has killed nine babies may be the result of the burgeoning anti-vaccine movement.
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