Vaccine Safety in the United States: Overview and Considerations for COVID-19 Vaccines

Vaccine Safety in the United States: Overview and Considerations for COVID-19 Vaccines. Congressional Research Service. Kavya Sekar, Agata Dabrowska.  November 4, 2020

Widespread immunization efforts have been linked to increased life expectancy and reduced illness. U.S. vaccination programs, headed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), have helped eradicate smallpox and nearly eradicate polio globally, and eliminate several infectious diseases domestically. With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) now causing major health and economic impacts across the world, efforts are underway to make safe and effective vaccines available quickly to help curb spread of the virus.

[PDF format, 43 pages].