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Mack Guthrie

@mackgu3.bsky.social

110 followers 180 following 110 posts

MPH student at @busph.bsky.social | Former CDC | (He/him) Interests: Epidemiology, health law, policy, and emergency/pandemic preparedness

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · Feb 21

It was such an honor to be interviewed for this piece.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

‘I feel betrayed’: federal health workers fired by Trump tell of ‘nightmare’

US workers laid off despite years of experience and stellar performance describe widespread chaos and confusion

www.theguardian.com

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 21h

Only 3 states and DC require the HPV vaccine for school attendance. I don’t foresee a rush by states to add this to their schedule, but the new evidence of herd immunity improves the calculus slightly in-favor of vaccinations here, which state legislatures / school boards will have to consider.

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 21h

Other existing mandates raise the same question, even if farther afield from sexual transmission. Tetanus does not transmit person-to-person. One’s vaccination status does not impact others risk of acquiring tetanus, and yet all 50 states require it for school (as a TDaP component).

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 21h

I agree that the sex at school is pretty much non-consequential here. Where I’m not certain is the question of whether sexual transmission precludes a mandate.

While HepB transmission like you describe is possible, it’s mostly spread via sharing needles and unprotected sex, more akin to HPV.

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 22h

Penile cancer was also the one that got the most shocked faces from the boys in my health classes.

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 22h

I used to work in the adolescent health setting and I was surprised at the number of patients who told me they had engaged in sexual relations at school, often during lunch. I’ll yield that that’s unlikely to be the primary reason/motivation for an HPV vaccine mandate, but it does occur. 3/3

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 22h

For example, most states require HepB vaccination for school attendance, despite HBV being primarily blood-borne and very unlikely to be transmitted in schools.

2. Does HPV transmission occur at school? Like @doritreiss.bsky.social notes, kids do actually have sex at school. 2/3

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 22h

I think the issue poses two questions

1. Is a school vaccine mandate strictly for the prevention of infection transmission at school? No, not exclusively. School vaccine mandates are (I think) more accurately the means for encouraging community vaccination levels 1/3

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 1d

This has historically been a barrier to mandating the vaccine in schools as well, based on the view of HPV vaccination as an individual and not community health intervention.

Not that this current climate is very conducive to new mandates being made…

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 1d

Amazing news! I’ve found in many conversations that the HPV vaccine is considered a “selfish” (for lack of a better word) vaccine that protects only the recipient, not communities.

Exciting to see that’s not necessarily the case!

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 2d

Just skimmed the full speech, and it was a comfort to see our military members largely abstaining from applause for the most politically-laden lines (incl. the one here about democrats being gnats)

The UFC fight at the White House scheduled for June 14, 2026 got loud applause though, lol

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 2d

Just skimmed the full footage and it appears that the sailors (wisely) did not applaud for the line describing democrats as gnats.

By and large our military is dedicated to the constitution and serving apolitically, though Hegseth is trying his best to erode that.

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 2d

The McMillan Reservoir development has been such a lost opportunity for the city. Hopefully Bowser is able to make these changes happen. It’s a shame to let a site relatively close to downtown (and the hospital center) go unused.

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 3d

Can’t wait for the day we have a commercialized norovirus vaccine. Even moderate and/or short-term protection would be amazing for travelers.

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 3d

Can’t wait for the day we have a commercialized norovirus vaccine

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 3d

No matter how many times I read this, my brain keeps seeing Zotero

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Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 3d

Lowkey love seeing all the endorsements on the network graph! How cool!

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 4d

It certainly feels there should be a distinction made between traditional pedal-assist e-bikes and the quasi-electric motorcycles you often see now.

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 4d

Given what’s going on with federal science funding, we’re really not in a position to be turning down private-sector research funding, I’d imagine.

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 5d

I’m surprised it’s even at 4%! Very very few people I know in the “real world” use Bluesky at all.

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 5d

I fear my health law & policy class is a psyop to make me go to law school

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 7d

I wonder how much of the increase is in veterinary scripts. Seems to be a very common script in small animal practice.

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 8d

Hopefully we continue to see the evidence accumulate for phone interventions in schools. Having worked in schools, most of us staff and teachers are pretty certain the phones are the problem, but we should want to know for sure.

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 8d

This was the morsel of hope for the future that I needed today ❤️

The Washington Post @washingtonpost.com · 11d

After this high school in Kentucky banned cellphones, they saw a 67% increase in students checking out library books.

Kentucky joins a growing number of states, schools and districts that have been implementing new phone bans.

A school in Kentucky banned phones. Remarkable things started happening.

After Ballard High School banned phones, they saw a 67% increase in students checking out library books.

www.washingtonpost.com

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 9d

The finding that the shingles vax decreased risk of dementia was widely reported last year, but we’ve heard less about similar findings for others (Flu, RSV, TDaP)

I imagine we’ll keep seeing this as we study more vaccines, with how much inflammation is averted with a prevented/attenuated disease.

Kris Gates @krismgates.bsky.social · 9d

Gift 🎁 article. The summary: Flu, Shingles, RSV, and Tdap. Likely mechanism is by reducing severe infections that can accelerate brain atrophy, a cause of dementia.
wapo.st/4gKIPhK

4 vaccines linked to a lower risk of dementia

Some vaccine-preventable diseases are linked to accelerated brain atrophy and increased dementia risk years down the line.

wapo.st

Mack Guthrie @mackgu3.bsky.social · 12d

Sorry, but if your kid is too young to safely cook ramen noodles, they should not have a phone, let alone be on TikTok.

Unfortunate that these kids are being burned, literally, by phones and a lack of kitchen safety training.