Thank you so much for those kind words. Yes Monica is still here. Thank goodness.

Atlanta, Memphis and Nashville are metro areas with vaccination rates below the needed 95 percent. Measles outbreaks in those areas would be “terrifying,” said Scott Thorpe, head of a nonprofit public health group focused on the South.

SC has already seeded cases in NC and Washington states. “We are losing decades of public health successes, and children will get very sick and die from preventable illnesses,” said Martha Edwards, head of AAP’s SC chapter.

Pediatricians said shifting to more restrictive type of recommendation will confuse doctors and patients. “ I have never been more concerned about the future of vaccines and children’s health than I am now,” said pediatrician David Higggins. 4/4

It is not immediately clear, which shots would no longer be routinely recommended. Plans are still in flux, the people said. 3/4

The plan would more closely align the US schedule with that of Denmark. It would also shift most vaccines to a more restrictive approach, known as shared clinical decision-making 2/4

“It feels so frustrating and disheartening to watch science, public health and decades of a well-respected institution be dismantled,” said one CDC scientist. 5/5