Malaria Back in the USA: A Case for Universal Vaccine Access

In a twist that should shock but may not surprise, we find ourselves, in 2023, battling a resurgence of a disease we had claimed victory over almost 75 years ago. Malaria, the mosquito-borne disease eradicated from the United States in 1951, has once again reared its head. This time it has found fertile ground in Florida.

The startling return of malaria, a disease that historically claimed countless lives, underscores a glaring fault line in the US healthcare system: the unavailability of life-saving vaccines. This is not because these vaccines don't exist, but because they aren't deemed profitable enough by manufacturers. Among these is the malaria vaccine, approved by the FDA in 2020, which remains mysteriously absent from the US vaccine repertoire.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has endorsed the malaria vaccine as essential, particularly for children who bear the brunt of this disease in regions where it is prevalent. Yet, this recommendation has seemingly fallen on deaf ears in the United States. Why is a vaccine, championed by a respected global health body, gathering dust on the proverbial shelf?

The ugly answer lies at the intersection of profit and public health. A number of essential vaccines – against malaria, Lyme disease, and monkeypox (prevented with the smallpox vaccine), to name a few – remain unavailable or in short supply in the US, trapped behind the barriers of profitability. Manufacturers are loath to invest in a product line that might not guarantee a steady stream of revenue, especially for preventative medicine. But the question remains: should the profitability of a vaccine dictate its accessibility?

Vaccines have a well-established track record of being one of the most cost-effective public health interventions. Smallpox, once a ruthless killer, was eradicated globally through a concentrated vaccine campaign. Polio, another debilitating disease, has been confined to a handful of countries due to concerted vaccination efforts. And of course the groundbreaking mRNA Covid Vaccine that ended the pandemic.

Shouldn't the US, a global leader in healthcare innovation, strive for the same success? The malaria vaccine, should not be locked away in a proverbial vault of market-driven decision-making, but made widely available to the public. Access to life-saving vaccines should not be an economic privilege, but a basic right.

We, the public, need to play a critical role in changing this scenario. I urge you to contact your local representatives. Demand that essential vaccines, such as those for malaria, Lyme disease, and monkeypox, be funded for production the federal level and made widely available. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that public health of this nation keeps this formerly eradicated disease at bay.

In the face of this renewed malaria threat, and with an array of other diseases just a mosquito-bite or tick-bite away, the time for complacency is over. Let's invest in the future of our nation's health by demanding universal vaccine access today. Let's ensure that we don't allow the ghosts of diseases past to haunt our present and future.

After all, in public health, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It's high time we started acting on this truth.