Vaccination: A Look Back at the Public Consultation
The government is proposing to Parliament that eight vaccinations previously recommended for young children be made mandatory, in addition to the three vaccinations that are currently mandatory. As part of the parliamentary debate, Alain Fisher, chair of the citizen consultation on vaccination, is testifying today before the Social Affairs Committee. Santé publique France reviews the citizen consultation process that led to this proposal.
What is this about?
The public consultation on vaccination is part of the action plan “Toward a Renewal of Vaccination Policy,” presented on January 12, 2016, by Marisol Touraine, former Minister of Social Affairs and Health. The task of conducting this public consultation and drafting a report of recommendations was entrusted to an independent, multidisciplinary steering committee composed of representatives from civil society and users, healthcare professionals, and researchers in the humanities and social sciences. The committee’s proposals have the dual objective of restoring trust and improving vaccination coverage. They are based on six months of reflection and dialogue involving citizens and healthcare professionals.
The steering committee of the citizen consultation on vaccination, chaired by Professor Alain FISCHER and co-chaired by Ms. Claude RAMBAUD, presented the proposals from its report on November 30, 2016, during a public meeting at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. The report, a recording of the public meeting, and the conclusions from each stage of the consultation are available on the website concertation-vaccination.fr.
The Methodology
To encourage a diverse range of public input and inform its deliberations, the steering committee structured the consultation process throughout 2016 into four stages:
in April, commissioning of two qualitative opinion surveys to obtain an up-to-date and objective picture of the perceptions, expectations, and reservations of the general public and healthcare professionals;
from June to November, hearings with 29 stakeholders representing a variety of viewpoints: citizens, patient and user associations, healthcare professionals, journalists, learned societies, industry representatives, and institutions;
from July to September, the establishment of two panels—one of citizens and one of healthcare professionals who are not vaccination specialists—mandated by the committee to debate, gather information, interview stakeholders of their choice (15 interviews), and each produce a reasoned opinion. These opinions were discussed with the committee during a debriefing meeting on October 14, 2016.
From September 14 to October 14, an online participatory forum was launched, which collected
10,435 contributions from internet users, which were read and analyzed by the committee
The results
The actions proposed by the committee are compiled in a detailed report that thoroughly discusses several scenarios for the evolution of vaccination policy. The proposals are based on the findings of the consultation, the results of which are appended to the report. On this basis, the committee was able to address topics such as the transparency of expert assessments, information, communication, the vaccination pathway, training for healthcare professionals, research, and the regulatory status of vaccines.
Regarding the status of vaccines, two main scenarios were examined and debated. Considering societal demands and public health imperatives, the committee concludes that lifting the vaccination mandate is the goal to be achieved. Nevertheless, in the current context of declining trust and falling vaccination coverage, it appears necessary to reaffirm the validity of vaccination. To this end, the committee recommends a temporary extension of the mandatory nature of recommended childhood vaccines, accompanied by an exemption clause and free access to them.
