Physicians for Informed Consent Releases New Documents on Risks of Whooping Cough and the Pertussis Vaccine (DTaP and Tdap)

The Pertussis Vaccine Does Not Prevent Asymptomatic Infection or Transmission

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., May 5, 2023 (Newswire.com) - Physicians for Informed Consent (PIC) has released two new educational documents packed with critical statistical data on pertussis (whooping cough) and the pertussis vaccine (DTaP and Tdap). With information compiled from sources such as the National Center for Health Statistics, the PIC documents help parents compare disease risks to vaccine risks, in order to make more informed vaccination decisions.

Because six doses of the pertussis-containing vaccine are injected into infants and children, beginning at 2 months of age, it's important to know the relevant statistical data concerning vaccination. Through the PIC documents "Pertussis (Whooping Cough) - Disease Information Statement (DIS)" and "Pertussis (Whooping Cough) - Vaccine Risk Statement (VRS)," readers will:

• Learn what parents need to know about whooping cough infection
• Understand the basics about the whooping cough vaccine (DTaP and Tdap) 
• Learn the risks of the whooping cough vaccine and the limitations of safety research
• Assess whether the whooping cough vaccine is safer than whooping cough infection 

"There are two very illuminating points about whooping cough and its vaccine that are explained in PIC's Pertussis DIS and VRS," said Dr. Shira Miller, founder and president of Physicians for Informed Consent. "One is that it's estimated that even without mass vaccination the risk of an American infant dying of whooping cough is about 1 in 46,000 or 0.002%, and the other is that an FDA study indicates that the whooping cough vaccine doesn't prevent asymptomatic infection or the spread of infection. This shows how unscientific it is to exclude kids who haven't had the whooping cough vaccine from attending private or public schools — which is happening in California and a few other states; especially because all the whooping cough vaccines currently contain aluminum — a known neurotoxin."

Many parents aren't aware that in the 1980s, lawsuits against vaccine makers were mounting due to severe vaccine injuries in children, and vaccine manufacturers threatened to stop producing vaccines. In reaction to this threat, Congress established the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986. Through this law, manufacturers and healthcare professionals became exempt from liability for vaccine injuries and deaths. A no-fault compensation system was devised, and parents and taxpayers — instead of vaccine manufacturers and physicians — were made to carry the responsibility and burden of children's vaccine injuries and deaths.

To protect children's health, it's essential that parents are able to access reliable infectious disease and vaccine education. PIC makes scientific data freely available with its education program, a growing collection of concise, reader-friendly one-page educational documents that support parents, physicians and policymakers in calculating the risk-benefit ratio of vaccination. To read the newest DIS and VRS documents on pertussis (whooping cough) and the pertussis vaccine (DTaP and Tdap), visit physiciansforinformedconsent.org/pertussis.