Reader's Comments

Debate Begins on Smallpox Vaccination

Is there virus outside the lab? Yes, there must be! One example was when the graves of small pox victims in new england were opened 125 years after they died, some of the workmen opening the graves contracted small pox. It is quite possible that the virus still exists in the ground around the graves of small pox victims and could be obtained for use by terrorists, or even by accident. While vaccination of everyone would cause some deaths, there is NO way "ring vaccination" could control the spread of small pox today in the world when one person can travel around the globe in less than the space of a day. Granted, the person who is infectious with small pox is SICK and not likely to be traveling, but many of us (especially health professionals!) go to work when we feel bad--what's to say this person didn't drag himself to work---maybe as a ticket taker at a rock concert! Can you imagine the horror as he spread it to 50,000 individuals from 47 states! I work in college health and have a difficult time keeping the students from spreading strep and mono--I "preach" don't drink after each other, etc. but to no avail I am afraid. The thread of Small pox is more a concern to me than it probably should be and maybe I am borrowing trouble to worry about it, but I feel that biological terrorism is the wave of the future. If 19 men would put themselves into airplanes and divebomb them into buildings don't you think there is the same number willing to infect themselves with small pox or ebola and come to the US? I don't have confidence that we could stop an epidemic in time if one started. By the time the cause was identified, and made the news, the population would panic (me included) I vote that we all line up and become vaccinated (voluntarily) [medical professionals first] which would give some herd immunity for the population and assure that there were healthy medical professionals to vaccinate the rest of the population should the need arise.

Joyce Alexander

I continue to read questions of whether or not people previously immunized against smallpox still have protection. Why not do a study checking the immunization levels of people in that group? It would yield some valuable information.

L Speer

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Debate Begins on Smallpox Vaccination