Context
In the early 1950s, polio was America's most feared disease. Summer outbreaks closed swimming pools and movie theaters. Parents kept children indoors. Iron lungs filled hospital wards. President Roosevelt himself had been paralyzed by the disease. The March of Dimes fundraising campaign collected millions from ordinary Americans desperate for a cure.
The Deed
Salk developed an inactivated (killed) virus vaccine and tested it in one of the largest clinical trials in history: 1.8 million children participated in 1954. On April 12, 1955, the results were announced, and the vaccine was declared 'safe, effective, and potent.' Church bells rang. People wept in the streets. Salk became an instant national hero. He refused to patent the vaccine, forgoing an estimated $7 billion in personal profit.
Why It Matters
The polio vaccine campaign became the model for global public health initiatives. Sabin's subsequent oral vaccine enabled mass immunization in developing countries. The WHO's Global Polio Eradication Initiative, launched in 1988, has reduced cases by over 99.9%. The principle that lifesaving medicine should be accessible to all was powerfully demonstrated.
Brutal Truth
The Cutter Incident of 1955 saw 200,000 children receive vaccines containing live poliovirus due to a manufacturing defect. 40,000 developed polio, 200 were paralyzed, and 10 died. It was one of the worst pharmaceutical disasters in US history. Despite this, the vaccination campaign continued and ultimately succeeded.
By the Numbers
- 1.8 million children in the 1954 trial
- 99.9% reduction in polio cases since 1988
- $7 billion in revenue Salk forfeited by not patenting
- 350,000 annual cases in 1988 reduced to under 100 today