Parents and caregivers are encouraged to ensure their infants are immunized against vaccine-preventable diseases during an annual awareness week, April 21 to 28. Since 1994, National Infant Immunization Week has served as a way to highlight both the importance of vaccines and the achievements of immunization programs.
This year the week also marks the first World Immunization Week, held in conjunction with the Pan American Health Organization’s (PAHO) Vaccination Week in the Americas (VWA).
Vaccines protect infants and toddlers from 14 diseases, saving $13.6 billion in direct costs and preventing 42,000 deaths per birth cohort immunized according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Immunization rates remain high in the United States, however proponents point to recent outbreaks of pertussis (whooping cough) and measles to underscored the importance of continued support of vaccination programs.