The Hepatitis B Birth Dose Vaccine: Do We Need It? An Honest Conversation w Dr. Paul Offit & Dr. Michael Mina

It’s the very first shot a newborn gets—just hours after birth. Today, Secretary Kennedy’s new Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) Committee is reviewing whether it should remain so. We’re talking about the Hepatitis B “birth dose,” the starting point of America’s childhood vaccine schedule since 1991.

But for some parents today, it’s the starting point of their vaccine hesitancy. They ask: “Why give a vaccine against a virus mostly spread through sex or IV drug use to a brand-new baby?” That question has fueled broader mistrust of the government’s vaccine message.

Supporters counter that childbirth itself is a major risk if the mother carries Hep B—and testing is far from foolproof. They point to the thousands of babies infected each year before the birth dose became universal, and cases plummeted.

What would delaying that first shot until later in childhood mean? Is it a way to rebuild public trust or a risky rollback that could put more kids in danger?

We explore these questions with two leading voices in vaccines, Dr. Paul Offit and Dr. Michael Mina, who don’t totally see eye to eye on the "birth dose".

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek

Guests:

Dr. Paul Offit, a leading pediatrician and infectious disease specialist, co-inventor of the rotavirus vaccine, was on the FDA’s Vaccine Advisory Committee, director of the Vaccine Education Ctr at the Children Hospital of Philadelphia

Dr. Michael Mina, an epidemiologist, immunologist, and physician. Former associate professor at Harvard Medical School & TH Chan School of Public Health, led America’s test-to-treat program during the pandemic; has served as a scientific advisor for health start-ups. 

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