50 years ago, scientists debated the necessity of a smallpox vaccine
Excerpt from the January 31, 1970 issue of Science News
Smallpox killed up to 500 million people before it was declared globally eradicated in 1980. Efforts to weaponize the smallpox virus have led scientists to rethink vaccination strategies to keep people safe.
Roger Smith/Library of Congress
Vaccine controversy, Science News, January 31, 1970 —
In the early 1950s, when smallpox was declared officially to have been wiped out in the United States, specialists in infectious diseases began to argue whether the risks of [smallpox] vaccination finally outweighed the benefits….