Why are fewer newborns getting vaccinated against hepatitis B? It’s a question that’s suddenly on everyone’s minds. The vaccination rates dropped from 83% in 2023 to a shocking 73% just two years later. That’s a decline of over 10 percentage points! What happened? Well, a study published in JAMA looked into hospital and clinic records, revealing worrisome trends.
Vaccination rates for newborns against hepatitis B plummeted from 83% to 73% in just two years—what’s going on?
In Oregon, the numbers tell a similar story. In 2024, 82% of infants received the HepB birth dose, down from 86% in 2022. That’s right—county rates varied wildly, from 60% to 90%. And don’t even get started on hepatitis B screening for birth parents, which fell from 96% to 94%. The decline in screening rates is particularly alarming for public health officials.
Declining rates over four years? Not a good look. The CDC didn’t help matters when they changed their vaccine recommendations in December. They decided to stop recommending routine newborn hepatitis B vaccination. Instead, the guidance now only covers babies born to mothers with hepatitis B. Great! Just what we needed—more confusion. The American Academy of Pediatrics wasn’t thrilled either.
Why does any of this matter? Because if newborns don’t get vaccinated, they face serious health risks. Up to 90% of infants infected at birth develop chronic infections, and about 25% of those kids could die from cirrhosis or liver cancer. The vaccine has been a lifesaver, reducing hepatitis B deaths in America. So, a drop in vaccination rates? That’s a recipe for disaster. The hepatitis B vaccine is recommended to be given within 24 hours of birth, making timely vaccination critical.
Historically, coverage for the birth dose has been below 77%, and the pandemic didn’t help. Hospitals kept their rates high during COVID-19, but that’s not enough. Children born between 2020 and 2021 saw a drop in overall vaccination rates, and it’s all tied to these troubling trends.
It’s time to ask the hard questions and turn this ship around.
