Effort to eliminate polio gets coordinated worldwide focus

In a world where I constantly feel like I have to defend my advocacy of full vaccination, it is sometimes reassuring to look backward. There is nothing more profound than the history of the polio vaccine. Thanks to vaccination, there has not been polio in the United States since 1979. Current new parents barely know what polio is; however, you need only ask someone in their 60s or 70s to be reminded. That generation lived through an era of fear of large groups, families who lost several children, mass quarantines and permanent disabilities. In the United States, we typically administer a polio vaccine at ages 2 months, 4 months, 6 months and 4-5 years. It is a well-tolerated vaccine with very few side effects. Worldwide polio eradication remains a goal. In 2012, there were 223 cases of polio in the world. A very powerful collaboration between The World Health Organization, UNICEF, the CDC...