Health Podcast Library
Public Health On Call
Season 11Episode 842

842 - Polio and the Polio Vaccine

Jan 29, 2025
24:50

Episode Description

About this episode:

Thanks to vaccines, most people under a certain age have no memory of the devastation and terror caused by the poliovirus. Although widely eliminated, polio still poses a threat in certain countries around the world. Waning vaccination rates in pockets of the U.S. mean some communities are at risk of a resurgence. In this episode: a look back at polio before vaccines, and how technology has evolved—including a discussion about a previous version of the vaccine that did, in rare instances, actually cause paralytic polio.

Guest:

Dr. Bill Moss is the executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Host:

Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

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