Polio live oral vaccine: Here's why the US stopped using it years ago

An unvaccinated resident of Rockland County, N.Y., exposed to a person who received an oral polio vaccine has contracted polio, health officials said; here's what to know about the vaccines.

Officials could not confirm where the individual who received the oral polio vaccine was from or where the person who is ill encountered this person.  The U.S. stopped using the oral polio vaccine (OPV) in 2000 — and instead uses the inactivated polio vaccine (IPV), which does not contain the live virus.  Symptoms can range from mild flu-like symptoms — including vomiting, fever, headache and muscle stiffness — to more severe symptoms such as muscle weakness, even paralysis. In the U.S., health care professionals prefer the IPV so that children will have immunity if exposed to polio without the potential of shedding the virus to others. Polio was almost eradicated thanks to the vaccination developed in the 1955.  Health officials said this week they are concerned there may be vaccine hesitancy due to the COVID pandemic.  Amy McGorry is a contributing health reporter for Fox News Digital. Follow her on Twitter @amymcgorry.

"Based on what we know about this case and polio in general, the Department of Health strongly recommends that unvaccinated individuals get vaccinated or boosted with the FDA-approved IPV [inactivated] polio vaccine as soon as possible," State Health Commissioner Dr. Mary T. Bassett said in a release from the N.Y. State Department of Health that was provided to Fox News Digital.