Vaccines are still safe and effective, WellSpan doctor says

• A WellSpan doctor is working to dispel vaccine misinformation amid recent CDC recommendation changes.
• Pennsylvania’s public school vaccination requirements are set by the state and have not changed.
• Parents are encouraged to consult with their physicians to navigate vaccine information and make informed decisions.

Amid growing confusion, a WellSpan doctor wants to dispel misinformation about the safety and efficacy of vaccines.

On Jan. 5, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials announced a series of changes to recommendations for various vaccines, including hepatitis, human papillomavirus (HPV), meningococcal and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Meanwhile, a growing wave of misinformation has spread across social media.

“All of these vaccines are still safe and they’re still effective,” said Mark Goedecker, WellSpan’s associate chief medical officer. “Nothing has changed with that.”

Goedecker said his biggest concern about these changes and the different recommendations coming from the various trusted medical groups is the confusion it will cause. 

For instance, the Pennsylvania Department of Health said it will continue to follow “medical experts, to trust science and to support evidence-based vaccine guidance.”

Additionally, the public school vaccination requirements are controlled by the states, Department of Health Press Secretary Neil Ruhland told the Dispatch. He said Pennsylvania’s is set by the Legislature and any changes would require action to change it. Those requirements still apply now and have not been changed.

“No matter what comes out of DC, the Shapiro Administration will continue with clear, science-based guidance that doctors and parents can count on to make informed health care decisions,” he said. 

He said the department will continue to share recommendations from trusted organizations such as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American Academy of Pediatrics and American Academy of Family Physicians. 

Secretary of Health Debra Bogen said in a press release that the health department will continue to provide necessary information to the parents to protect their children. 

“As we go through this, I think the important thing is that we are giving the best scientific information, correct information to parents,” Goedecker said, adding that none of the recommendations are incorrect, just different. 

But Goedecker and other doctors will continue to help parents navigate these decisions to help them best protect their children. 

He said the changes were made to align the country with other developed countries, such as Denmark and Japan, which offer fewer doses of vaccines. 

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That said, the U.S. is different from other countries, including Japan and Denmark. For instance, we will not offer a vaccine for Japanese Encephalitis, which is a serious brain inflammation spread by mosquitoes. Goedecker said that’s not something American doctors would give. 

He also pointed out that there is a lot of good research on the HPV vaccine that shows one dose might work, but those studies were not done in the U.S. Rather, they were done in Tanzania and India, which are very different economically and demographically from the U.S. 

“And I think you have to make sure that we’re applying apples to apples when we start doing things like that,” he said.

In recent months, President Donald Trump has taken to his social media and suggested parents should break up vaccine doses. Goedecker said it is important to stick with the vaccine schedule, which is 11 vaccines, but 72 doses. He explained that children receive multiple doses throughout their childhood to help boost their immune system. For instance, the tetanus vaccine doses are administered when the child is 2, 4, 6 and 15 months old and another at 4 years old. After that, it is recommended to get a booster every 10 years.

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“That’s an example of that where the immunity, in some of those vaccines, your immunity wanes,” he said. “It decreases over time and we want to boost that to make sure that you continue to be protected.”

As for the vaccines, such as flu, he still recommends administering them to children because they are still at risk. The CDC reported on the same day as the vaccine change announcement that nine children had died of flu-related illnesses this season. The 2024-2025 flu season saw 289 children’s deaths. 

“So it can be a very dangerous or even fatal disease, even to kids, even to healthy kids,” Goedecker said. 

Another example is the rotavirus, which he explained is a bad diarrhea illness that is a pretty significant illness worldwide, but has been eliminated here through vaccination. Goedecker said children could die from that virus. So vaccines, such as that one, he believes will still be right for most babies to receive doses of. 

He recommends parents talk to their physicians to help make informed decisions, because those doctors want to do what’s best to protect the children. 

For example, he recently spoke to a couple who expressed concern during their one-year-old’s visit. While discussing the vaccines, they told Goedecker that they have a normal child and were concerned that the vaccines could stunt their child’s development. 

Goedecker reminded the parents that the vaccines have been administered to millions of patients over the past several decades. 

“We know that they don’t cause any developmental problems,” he said. “They don’t cause autism.”

He also told the parents that the vaccines their child was going to receive were the same doses he gave to both of his children at that age. 

“I wouldn’t do anything different for my children, for your children,” he recalled explaining, saying he wants to give them the same high level of care and protection. 

Goedecker said there have been many ongoing studies that looked into the safety of vaccines and the schedule and they show they do not cause autism. 

He said there’s no new data that shows they are unsafe. 

Goedecker said he has helped parents navigate their concerns about the vaccines before because they understand that vaccines can be scary. He also understands that the parents want to protect the children from something bad from happening.

While he stresses it is important to follow the schedule, he does work with the parents when they tell him they aren’t comfortable with certain vaccines. He will continue to talk to them about the ones that make the parents anxious. It’s not OK to skip or limit certain vaccines, but he does want to work with parents to protect the children as much as they can. And while it is the parents’ decision, he encourages them to talk to doctors to learn why the vaccines are beneficial. 

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