The following statistics are the latest available from the National Center for Health Statistics (part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC) and the National Coalition for Adult Immunizations:

• Approximately one-third of Americans have been exposed to hepatitis A.
  
  
• Each year, there are approximately 80,000 hepatitis B infections.
  
  
• Each year, there are approximately 40,000 hepatitis C infections.
  
  
• Tuberculosis strikes more than 25,000 people annually.
  
  
• Adults are 10 times more likely to develop severe complications from the vaccine-preventable disease chickenpox.
  
  
• The sixth leading cause of death for older adults is influenza and pneumococcal pneumonia.
  
  
• More than 13,000 people die of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) annually.
  
  
• About four million people get chickenpox every year.
  
  
• Even though the measles vaccination is now available, a little over 100 cases of measles still occur annually.
  
  
• The number of cases of sexually transmitted diseases occurring annually in the US is still alarming:
  
  
  • Syphilis: 37,977 (1998)
  • Chlamydia: 607,602 (1998)
  • Gonorrhea: 355,642 (1998)
    
    
• Whooping cough affects more than 7,000 people annually.