As vaccine hesitancy rises and confusion persists around pediatric vaccine schedules, a new national study offers clear evidence supporting the importance of hepatitis B vaccination at birth.

A national advisory committee voted today to change its guidance on newborn hepatitis B vaccination, recommending shared decision-making rather than universal vaccination for infants born to hepatitis B-negative mothers. Despite this shift, Denver Health will continue recommending the hepatitis B vaccine on the day of birth for all newborns. This decision is based on the presence of hepatitis B in our community, the risk of exposure from mothers without prenatal care or household contacts and the continued safety and effectiveness of the vaccine.

As a trusted partner in the community, Denver Health remains committed to providing clear, science-based information about vaccines. This is especially important as flu and RSV season begins, when recommended vaccines play a critical role in protecting children, older adults and individuals with compromised health. Accurate, evidence-based information is essential to keeping our community safe — and recent updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have created unnecessary confusion that must be addressed.

A national study led by Denver Health researchers and funded by an investigator-initiated grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) shows that emergency departments (EDs) can be powerful partners in public health—especially when embedded in a system designed to learn and improve.