Meeting Public Comments

emily lewis []

SUPPORT HF632.This bill is extremely important to me. Our oldest son had a severe adverse reaction to the vaccines given to him at 6 months old. In the days following that appointment our son seemed to go deaf, he stopped responding to his name, he stopped attempting to mimic anything we said when he was previously mimicking us a lot. Even his doctor said he would most likely be an early talker. Our son was hitting every milestone prior to that appointment. When I took him back out of concern of the change the doctor denied that it had anything to do with the vaccines he had just had and he told me "its its normal for boys to regress." Our son continued to regress further and was making very little progression as he got older. We found a doctor that would help us. She was confident he had been having a severe reaction to those vaccines after she looked through his medical file, did her own testing, and spoke at length with us. Our son suffered a neurological injury. Hes been diagnosed with severe mixed expressive receptive language disorder, intellectual delay, cognitive delay, and sensory processing disorder. Our son is 5.5 years old now but he tests out at 2.5 years old in many ways. He is unable to speak for the most part and he has a very hard time understanding what is being said to him. he lacks the ability to reason and very easily gets into dangerous situations. He requires a one on one para at school all day long. Hes been in speech and occupational therapy since he was 2 with very slow progress. His doctors and therapists are unsure if he will ever speak properly or move beyond the intellectual or cognitive age of 3. Neither the doctor that we were originally seeing (who kicked us out of his practice when we decided to stop vaccinating our son after the adverse reaction) nor the doctor that was able to help us told us about VAERS or the VICP. I didnt learn about either of those until I was told about Informed Choice Iowa. By the time I learned about VAERS we were just past the cut off for reporting our sons reaction. Im not sure of the reason for the second doctor not telling us about VAERS was, she possibly didn't know abour it which is what I have found to be a common thing for doctors and nurses over the last few years. If a medical professional is made aware of a reaction they should be required by law to report it to VAERS. Less that 1% of reactions are ever reported to VAERS and this is hurting vaccine safety severely. PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BILL!

Tara Truex []

I fully support HF 632. And urge you to vote yes. Any type of medical procedure that can result in serious injury should have FULL disclosure of any reactions from previous persons undergoing treatment. Medical personnel should have full knowledge and instructions how to use VAERS to benefit the patient. Patients should be given the VAERS information prior to any type of vaccination.

Jim Kelli []

I fully support HF 632. We can not continue to claim all vaccines are safe and effective if we are not reporting on possible injuries and reactions caused by them.

Amansa Friedl []

Hearing that you are now considering this bill helps my heart, my son had a reaction to a vaccine 20 years ago.. the side effect is listed in the flyer I got. (Not the insert, but a 1 page colored paper). I called the nurse and she said to monitor it. I didnt know it could have long lasting effects. I really believe that not all medical professionals understand that this should be reported. I believe if we dont report adverse reactions we are inflating safety numbers. Please help support this bill.

Kate Giebeck []

Doctors must do better at informing patients of the reporting systems for adverse reactions to vaccines. So many times there is such a disconnect that there is even a possibility of a link and it leaves us as parents feeling like we're being gaslighted and ignored. It was only when I found another PCP for my child outside of the doctor that was covered by her insurance that we saw the link between her MMR shot and her inability to walk for 2 weeks afterwards. Reporting these reactions is so important. If we aren't tracking the data accurately, than how do we truly know how these shots are affecting our children and if they truly are "safe". Doctors need to be held to a higher standard for TRUE INFORMED CONSENT.

Shanon Epley []

We are in full support of HF 632. Vaccines need to be held to the same standard as any medication given to patients...with full knowledge of possible risks. We have a son who is vaccine injured. Right after getting his 9 month shots, he developed hydrocephalus. He imediately had to have surgery to place a shunt in his brain to drain the fluid building up. If let go, it would've been fatal. He has had 2 shunt replacements so far, and will have this the rest of his life. Because of the neurological damage from hydrocephalus, he has struggled with seizures, eczema, delayed motor skills, depression, anxiety, gut issues and has been diagnosed with aspergers. He is now 21 yrs old, still struggling with these conditions. I had no idea until 2 yrs ago about VAERS and adverse reactions due to vaccines. I wish we would've known back then what we know now...

Megan B []

Support HF632!This bill should be important to everyone. As a healthcare professional, I want to make sure I'm giving the best care to our patients. We give vaccines in our office and have never handed out a VIS or has anyone reported to VAERS. (I know this for fact as I've have asked others since learning this information myself.) If we truly want absolute transparency & decrease vaccine hesitancy, then all information should be made available so parents,, guardians and patients themselves and make an informed decision regarding their healthcare and feel empowered doing so. Providers & support staff should be made aware of the actual info patients need to know & both should be educated on how to report adverse events no matter how small it may be. We as healthcare professionals are already mandatory reports for abuse, so it should make sense to be mandatory reporters adverse events related to vaccines. (Or any medication for that matter) Thank you!

Britni Graham []

There is only one question you should be asking yourselves right now, and that is "why wouldn't someone support this bill?"In a day and age where many are being forced and pressured, both directly and indirectly, to have medical procedures that they don't want, enforcing this sort of reporting is the very least that should be done.

Jaime Griffis []

I am in SUPPORT of this bill. Why wouldnt someone be in support of this bill? VAERS was set up as a system for people to report reactions to. But people cannot report a reaction if they dont know about the system. Also, if someone calls their provider or the health department where they received the vaccination it should be required that the reaction is reported to VAERS. In my personal experience, when a question is brought up about a reaction, the reaction is blamed on something else and therefore not reported and that is not how it should be handled. PLEASE support this bill.

Emily Cole []

I support this bill. It should be required to report any reactions to vaccines.

brooke schefers []

I strongly support HF 632. The National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, passed in 1986 in response to calls from the Pharmaceutical companies, AAP, and other medical groups to shield vaccine manufacturers and doctors from liability for vaccine related deaths and injuries, ACKNOWLEGES THAT VACCINES CAN CAUSE INJURY AND DEATH. The Vaccine Injury Compensation Program was initiated by Congress in response to that acknowledgement. Understanding that there cannot be a liability free market impacting millions of children, the NVIC founders worked with Congress to secure vaccine informing, improving Informed Consent, recording and monitoring injuries and deaths to the federal Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS), and created a safety task force to report to Congress every 2 years. This has not been complied with for 32 years!Reporting injury and death associated with a vaccine is REQUIRED by federal law, but it is NOT enforced at a state level. There are no legal sanctions for pediatricians and/or other vaccine providers who fail to obey the federal law. Furthermore, there is no legal repercussion for NOT reporting serious health problems following vaccination to federal health officials, for NOT providing written vaccine risk/benefit information to parents or patients, or for NOT recording vaccine adverse reactions in the patients permanent medical record. I urge you to investigate the 1986 original law objectives laid out for informed consent and what adverse reactions were included to gain compensation from the VICP. Compare to what happened in 1993 and how drastically the safety precautions were cut. We know that it is estimated that between 1 and 10 percent of injury and death are reported to VAERS by pediatricians and health care providers. This lack of reporting has a ripple affect as far as inaccurate and incomplete data to evaluate safety of current and future vaccines, as well as an inaccurate portrayal of risk/benefit which impacts a patient/s right to Informed Consent. This is an ethical violation of a principal that has guided the medical community since the mid20th century. we must put in place accountability at a state level to ensure proper safety to all. That is the hope and goal of this bill, period.

Danielle Pettit-Majewski []

DO NOT SUPPORTThe focus of this bill, similar to the others, is to fix a problem that is not there. The Boards do not receive complaints about this issue. There is a federal law, that requires information to be provided and vaccine injuries to be reported.The bill promotes the false assumption that vaccines are harmful enough that they must be singled out more than other clinical patient care approaches in regards to patient safety and education. That is simply not the case. Since vaccines are administered to otherwise healthy people, they are among the most rigorously tested and safest medical products on the market. In fact, it can take 15 to 20 years or more and approximately $1 billion dollars to thoroughly test a new vaccine before it is licensed and made available to the public.Vaccine providers are already required to give Vaccine Information Statements to patients and parents BEFORE administering vaccine to ensure they are making an informed choice. We have just lived through a year without ONE vaccine and the impact on our country was horrendous. Vaccines keep our public healthy. They save lives.

Bettina Hewitt []

Please support HF 632. Our health care providers need to be informing all patients about VAERS with all vaccinations. The pediatric nurses in my life that I have asked about it do not know what it even is, what it is for or how to report to VAERS. This needs to utilized more than the approximately 1% shown in the Harvard study.

Kerry Crouch []

PLEASE, support HF 632. What's the purpose of VAERS? The government website,https://vaers.hhs.gov/about.htmlSAYS:"Established in 1990, the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) is a national early warning system to detect possible safety problems in U.S.licensed vaccines. VAERS is comanaged by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). VAERS accepts and analyzes reports of adverse events (possible side effects) after a person has received a vaccination. Anyone can report an adverse event to VAERS. Healthcare professionals are required to report certain adverse events and vaccine manufacturers are required to report all adverse events that come to their attention." The GOVERNMENT website says doctors AND vaccine manufacturers are supposed to report injuries to be able to track the info vsccines and problems caused by them. This is not being done except for 1% of all injuries because it's not being enforced. VAERS was established to be a helpful tool to collect data to help fix issues. It's not being utilized correctly. Vaccine injuries and deaths are common knowledge now. However, doctors are telling their injured patients they are believing lies, people aren't getting the help they need, damage keeps happening. Now look at the mess we are in. Most people don't trust the government anymore because of issues like this. PLEASE. Help us get this mess straightened out. Support HF 632.Thank you for your time and consideration of this very important bill.Kerry Crouch

Jenna Anthofer []

SUPPORT HF 632 Please support and pass this bill! It's appalling that reporting adverse events and reactions is a choice. An HHS investigation revealed that reactions and adverse events are severely underreported. How can the claim that vaccines are completely safe and effective be true if these reactions and adverse events are not properly documented and reported? This bill is integral to the health and safety of Iowa's children, and a vote against it tells me which politicians in Iowa aren't supporting the children of our state. Thank you for voting yes!

Laci Minard []

Please support this bill. We have four children, one of whom was injured by a vaccine. We had no idea that it was even a possibility, and our provider did not educate us on the possibility of an injury or reporting to VAERS once it happened. Our son will suffer for the rest of his life because of his injury.

Coreena Kinney []

I support HF 632. While the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act requires that health care professionals report ANY adverse event following vaccination, it does not provide any punishment for those who fail to report. It is critical to have the information collected in a timely matter, so as to limit harm in cases such as a particular vaccine lot being contaminated. VAERS is an early warning system, but it isn't being used. Studies show that less than 1% of severe adverse events are being reported. A family member suffered a dramatic change in her health shortly after a vaccine that her work required her to get. She now has multiple chronic conditions and cannot work. She asked the doctor to report it, and even handed a blank copy of the form to him. On the next visit, he denied that she had mentioned the vaccine or given him the reporting form. He refused to fill it out when she offered to give him a new one. We are continually told that vaccines are very safe. Those statements are based in part on how many reports are made to VAERS. With doctors refusing to report adverse events to VAERS, we can't actually be sure vaccines are safe.

Amy Kimball []

As a pediatrician, a parent, and an Iowan, I strongly urge you to oppose HF632. Vaccine Information Safety statements, including information about VAERS and required reporting, are already provided and discussed as standard of practice. Vaccine providers are required to discuss this information and record the VIS document date provided as part of the immunization documentation. This information is provided to patients and families at the time of immunization and immunizing providers discuss these with families. Any reported side effects are entered into the VAERS system through processes already in place in clinics and hospitals. This is an unfunded mandate without a source problem. Vaccines save lives. They are regulated, investigated, and researched more than any other medication or supplement. Vaccines are essential to the public health of all Iowans. Any regulations that increase fear and imposes penalties without scientific or factual basis stand to undermine the integrity of our health care system and our health. Please oppose HF632.

Chris Crew []

Support! This does not discourage vaccination; it encourages providers to do their job. My son had a reaction to a vaccine as a toddler. I reported the reaction to his Dr at the time. His Dr did not file a report in the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS). No one told me about VAERS; I discovered it on my own, researching after my son's reaction. VAERS is important for monitoring for trends. If reactions aren't reported, we can't see these trends. Vaccines need to be safe, but if reactions aren't reported, we can't ensure that they are. We're supposed be able to trust doctors. If their education and licencing isn't enough to get them to consistently report to VAERS as federally required, we need some teeth to grease the wheels.