Adopting From Abroad? Health Officials Strongly Suggest Getting Hepatitis A Shot

Published January 14, 2015

A federal advisory panel is recommending hepatitis A vaccinations for everyone who has close contact with children adopted from countries where hepatitis A is common.

That includes Guatemala, China, Russia and Ethiopia — four countries that are currently the major sources of international adoptions.

International adoptees trigger fewer than 1,000 of the estimated 32,000 hepatitis A infections that occur in the United States each year. But the potentially deadly illness has been a tragic surprise for many adopting families, officials said.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices made the recommendation Wednesday. The panel advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

URL

https://www.foxnews.com/story/adopting-from-abroad-health-officials-strongly-suggest-getting-hepatitis-a-shot