US Edition
Parents Are Refusing Routine Preventative Care for Newborns at Rising Rates, Study Finds
Refusals of vitamin K shots nearly doubled from 2.9% to 5.2% nationwide from 2017 to 2024, increasing risks of severe bleeding and related infant deaths, doctors say.
- A recent study found that refusals of vitamin K shots for newborns nearly doubled from 2.9% to 5.2% between 2017 and 2024, indicating rising medical mistrust beyond vaccines.
- Doctors are alarmed that skepticism fueled by rising anti-science sentiment is reaching proven, routine preventive care for babies, like vitamin K shots to prevent dangerous bleeding.
- Research shows that newborns who don't get a vitamin K shot are 81 times more likely to develop severe bleeding than those who do, and doctors in Idaho reported 8 deaths from vitamin K deficiency bleeding in 13 months.
62 Articles
62 Articles
It's not just vaccines—parents are refusing other routine preventive care for newborns
One day at an Idaho hospital, half the newborns Dr. Tom Patterson saw didn't get the vitamin K shots that have been given to babies for decades to prevent potentially deadly bleeding. On another recent day, more than a quarter didn't get the shot. Their parents wouldn't allow it.
It's not just vaccines. Parents are refusing other routine preventive care for newborns—even protection from severe bleeding and blindness
One day at an Idaho hospital, half the newborns Dr. Tom Patterson saw didn’t get the vitamin K shots that have been given to babies for decades to prevent potentially deadly bleeding. On another recent day, more than a quarter didn’t get the shot. Their parents wouldn’t allow it. “When you look at a child who’s innocent and vulnerable — and a simple intervention that’s been done since 1961 is refused — knowing that baby’s going out into the worl…
Why a once-routine newborn shot is seeing rising refusals
Newborns have routinely received vitamin K shots in their thighs within 6 hours of birth since the 1960s, but a study from the Journal of the American Medical Association found that more parents are opting out of the preventative measure. Once uncontroversial, parents report rising skepticism about the routine administration, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic. The American Academy of Pediatrics has long recommended vitamin K injections fo…
It’s not just vaccines - parents in the U.S. are refusing other routine preventive care for newborns
One day at an Idaho hospital, half the newborns Dr. Tom Patterson saw didn’t get the vitamin K shots that have been given to babies for decades to prevent potentially deadly bleeding. On another recent day, more than a quarter didn’t get the shot. Their parents wouldn’t allow it.
The Toronto Star
It’s not just vaccines - parents are refusing other routine preventive care for newborns
American doctors are alarmed that skepticism fueled by rising anti-science sentiment and medical mistrust is increasingly reaching beyond vaccines.
Chicago Tribune
It’s not just vaccines — parents are refusing other routine preventive care for newborns
One day at an Idaho hospital, half the newborns Dr. Tom Patterson saw didn’t get the vitamin K shots that have been given to babies for decades to prevent potentially deadly bleeding. On another recent day, more than a quarter didn’t get the shot. Their parents wouldn’t allow it.
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