Smallpox

You may be hearing about smallpox vaccinations in the news. This site is designed to answer your questions about smallpox and the vaccination.

Smallpox Facts

• Overview of Smallpox - prevention, causes, how it spreads
• Smallpox vaccine - what you need to know - information on vaccination
• Who should get the vaccine?

Smallpox Vaccines

Vaccination is not recommended, and the vaccine is not available to health providers or the public. In the absence of a confirmed case of smallpox anywhere in the world, there is no need to be vaccinated against smallpox. There also can be severe side effects to the smallpox vaccine, which is another reason we do not recommend vaccination. In the event of an outbreak, the CDC has clear guidelines to swiftly provide vaccine to people exposed to this disease. The vaccine is securely stored for use in the case of an outbreak. In addition, Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson recently announced plans to accelerate production of a new smallpox vaccine.

Information Hotline for California Residents: 800-550-5234

Our thanks to the CDC for information and content used on this website. All information is general in nature and is not intended to be used as a substitute for appropriate professional advice.

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