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Michigan mom pushes for meningitis vaccination requirement

Posted at 10:16 AM, Sep 02, 2018
and last updated 2018-09-02 10:16:31-04

A Detroit-area mom whose daughter died of bacterial meningitis is asking universities to require that students get the meningitis B vaccine.

The Detroit News reports that Alicia Stillman's 19-year-old daughter, Emily Stillman, died of the disease in 2013, when the vaccine had not yet been approved for use in the U.S. The vaccine was approved in 2014.

Alicia Stillman started the Emily Stillman Foundation in 2015 to raise awareness about the meningitis vaccine. She wants students at Big Ten universities to be vaccinated against meningitis. Health care organizations, including the Michigan State Medical Society, have joined Stillman's effort.

Society President Betty Chu says college students are particularly at risk of the disease because they're surrounded by communal settings.

Indiana University and Purdue University required the vaccination this spring.