[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 54 (Monday, April 26, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Page S4372]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SALK POLIO VACCINE FIELD TRIALS

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, this coming Monday is the 50th anniversary 
of the Salk polio vaccine field trials.
  On April 26, in conjunction with National Immunization Week, the 
March of Dimes will commemorate the development of the Salk polio 
vaccine.
  This day holds great significance for our Nation. Fifty years ago, 
the first dose of the Salk vaccine was distributed to children at 
Franklin Sherman Elementary school in McLean, VA as part of the 
National Field Trial program. In the following months, more than 1 
million school children participated in these trials, making this the 
largest peacetime volunteer mobilization in United States history.
  National Immunization week, which was established by the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention, is an opportune time to emphasize the 
importance of immunizations. In April of every year since 1993, 
dedicated people across the country have joined forces with State and 
local health departments, health care providers, and other partners to 
deliver this immunization message.
  Immunization against vaccine-preventable disease is one of the most 
effective health care and public health tools developed in the 20th 
century. Advances in technology and widespread immunization efforts 
have led to an all-time record low in the infection rate for diseases 
that once devastated entire communities. Smallpox has been eradicated; 
polio has been eliminated from the Western Hemisphere; and the number 
of cases of other infectious diseases has been reduced to record lows.
  We have learned a vast amount about the importance of immunizing 
children and adults in this country since the creation of the Salk 
vaccine. However, there is still work to be done. Though overall 
immunization levels in the United States have been improving, levels in 
many parts of the country remain dangerously low. According to a 2001 
National Immunization Survey Conducted by the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, only 77 percent of our Nation's children are 
fully immunized by age 2. Tragically, levels in some areas of the 
country are as low as 55 percent.
  The Salk vaccine could not have ended the scourge of polio in 
American without a concerted Federal effort to provide it to all of our 
citizens. I hope that my colleagues will join me in continuing and 
expanding Federal support for immunization efforts.

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