Wisconsin health officials
are breaking from
federal guidance
on hepatitis B vaccinations
for newborns
and saying babies
should get the shot
within 24 hours of birth.
A federal panel
of vaccine advisers last week
voted against recommending
all newborns receive it
unless their mothers
test positive.
Our guidance from Wisconsin
Department of Health Services
is unchanged, actually
and it's the same guidance
that has been
the standard of care
in the United States
for the past 30 years
and continues to be endorsed
by the
American Academy of Pediatrics.
And that is that all
children should
get vaccinated
with three doses
of a hepatitis B vaccine
and the first dose
should be given
in the first
24 hours of life.
How contagious is hep B
for newborns or others?
Hep B is a blood-borne virus
so it's not contagious
through casual contact
or through the air
or surfaces in the way
that we think about colds
flu and COVID.
It's really blood to blood.
So during
the birth process
is globally
and traditionally
one of the ways that babies
get infected.
It's because there's
transfer of blood
during the birthing process.
So it's
very contagious
if you do have an exposure
like this
either through
the childbirth process
or a needle stick injury
in health care
but not casual
contact in a day to day life.