How the US muddled through the polio vaccine rollout 65 years ago

The race to develop and distribute COVID-19 vaccines calls to mind another effort to eradicate polio. The scourge of the early 20th century paralyzed President Franklin Roosevelt. Tens of thousands of children lost the ability to walk for the rest of their lives. Parents wouldn’t let their kids play outside. Commerce and travel between cities were restricted during outbreaks, and quarantines were imposed.

In the mid 1950s came a breakthrough led by University of Pittsburgh virologist Dr. Jonas Salk. He became a household name, founding the medical research institute that bears his name in La Jolla. Before he died in 1995, he focused on finding a vaccine against HIV.

But the polio vaccine rollout wasn’t without its problems — many of which are happening now with COVID.