Vaccinate Your Family (VYF), formerly known as Every Child By Two (ECBT), is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

organization, based in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, which advocates for

vaccination Vaccination is the administration of a vaccine to help the immune system develop immunity from a disease. Vaccines contain a microorganism or virus in a weakened, live or killed state, or proteins or toxins from the organism. In stimulating ...

s. Founded in 1991, its stated goals are to "raise awareness of the critical need for timely

immunization Immunization, or immunisation, is the process by which an individual's immune system becomes fortified against an infectious agent (known as the antigen, immunogen). When this system is exposed to molecules that are foreign to the body, called ' ...

s and to foster a systematic way to immunize all of America's children by age two." ECBT was founded by former First Lady of the United States

Rosalynn Carter Eleanor Rosalynn Carter ( ; ; August 18, 1927 – November 19, 2023) was an American activist and humanitarian who served as the first lady of the United States from 1977 to 1981, as the wife of President Jimmy Carter. Throughout her decades of ...

and former First Lady of

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

Betty Bumpers. ECBT was renamed to Vaccinate Your Family in 2018.

Background

In 1991, Rosalynn Carter and Betty Bumpers founded Every Child By Two (ECBT) in response to a measles outbreak in which around 150 people, including young children, died as a result of contracting the disease. At the time, Carter said, "It is imperative that we move quickly to increase our capacity to vaccinate children who are at risk for

measles Measles (probably from Middle Dutch or Middle High German ''masel(e)'', meaning "blemish, blood blister") is a highly contagious, Vaccine-preventable diseases, vaccine-preventable infectious disease caused by Measles morbillivirus, measles v ...

and other diseases, such as

mumps MUMPS ("Massachusetts General Hospital Utility Multi-Programming System"), or M, is an imperative, high-level programming language with an integrated transaction processing key–value database. It was originally developed at Massachusetts Gen ...

rubella Rubella, also known as German measles or three-day measles, is an infection caused by the rubella virus. This disease is often mild, with half of people not realizing that they are infected. A rash may start around two weeks after exposure and ...

and

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

." Carter and Bumpers started the national immunization awareness project by enlisting the help of governors' spouses to advocate for vaccinations with the goal of immunizing 95% of U.S. children against diseases like

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...

, measles, and rubella by the year 2000. The group also expanded their educational outreach to include information about other vaccine preventable diseases, including

chickenpox Chickenpox, also known as varicella ( ), is a highly contagious disease caused by varicella zoster virus (VZV), a member of the herpesvirus family. The disease results in a characteristic skin rash that forms small, itchy blisters, which ...

whooping cough Whooping cough ( or ), also known as pertussis or the 100-day cough, is a highly contagious, Vaccine-preventable diseases, vaccine-preventable Pathogenic bacteria, bacterial disease. Initial symptoms are usually similar to those of the common c ...

, and HPV. VYF has partnered with such groups as the American Nurses Association, Parents of Kids with Infectious Diseases (PKIDs), rotary clubs, state health departments, schools and universities. ECBT is also part of the Immunization Advocacy Coalition. VYF supports the use of immunization registries through which health care providers can track children's immunization histories for the purpose of reducing the number of missed immunizations. it is a member of the Vaccine Safety Net.

Awards

1995 –

Kiwanis International Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. In 1987, the organization ...

Award and $10,000 grant for "bringing attention to early immunization." 2008 –

Centers for Disease Control The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and is headquartered in Atlanta, ...

(CDC) Champion of Prevention Award at the 34th National Immunization Conference in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

References

External links

* {{Rosalynn Carter 1991 establishments in the United States Health and disability rights organizations in the United States Non-profit organizations based in Washington, D.C. Organizations established in 1991 Rosalynn Carter Vaccination advocates Vaccination-related organizations based in the United States

Background

Awards

See also

References

External links