10/03/2026
A child in Montana has reportedly died from invasive Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib).
For many parents today, Hib is a disease they have barely heard of. There’s a reason for that.
Before routine Hib vaccination, this bacterium was a leading cause of bacterial meningitis in young children and could also cause bloodstream infections, pneumonia and life-threatening swelling of the airway. Today, Hib disease is uncommon in the United States because vaccination dramatically reduced it.
That success can create a dangerous illusion: when vaccines work well enough, we stop seeing the diseases they prevent, and eventually we can forget why we vaccinate against them in the first place.
Even RFK Jr’s proposed childhood vaccine schedule changes did not touch the Hib vaccine, which is usually given starting at 2 months old and then 2-3 additional doses are given depending on the product used. However, his anti-vaccine rhetoric and other disinformation campaigns over the years aimed at other vaccines is possibly causing a halo effect where people are less inclined to vaccinate their children for all vaccines.
This child’s death is a tragedy. It is also a reminder that vaccine-preventable diseases have not disappeared. The protection matters precisely because these infections can still be devastating.
Vaccines don’t just prevent illnesses. Sometimes, they prevent the illnesses we’ve been fortunate enough to forget.
