Dr. Paul A. Offit, internationally influential expert on vaccines, to receive the Hepatitis B Foundation’s Community Leadership Award
Doylestown, Pa., Dec. 18, 2025 – The Hepatitis B Foundation announced today that it will honor Paul A. Offit, MD, internationally recognized pediatrician, vaccinologist, author and educator, with its 2026 Community Leadership Award at the Foundation’s Annual Gala in April.
The Foundation is a global nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating hepatitis B, hepatitis D and liver cancer.
The Hepatitis B Foundation’s Community Leadership Award recognizes individuals or organizations who have made significant contributions to communities highly impacted by hepatitis B, hepatitis D and liver cancer. Awardees also demonstrate additional commitment to community service outside of the hepatitis B space.
“I appreciate this award, and it comes during an important time,” Dr. Offit said. “Vaccines are critical to the health of our children, and we must continue to make that case and advocate for their availability."
Hepatitis B Foundation President Chari A. Cohen, DrPH, MPH, said: “Paul has made major contributions to vaccine science, public health, and science communication. He has spent his career defending evidence-based medicine and combating misinformation to help parents and the broader public make informed decisions for their health. We recognize and deeply appreciate his willingness to engage in public debate about the value of vaccines at a time when it requires courage to do so. And Dr. Offit has been very generous with his time in advising the Hepatitis B Foundation over the years.”
Dr. Offit is Director of the Vaccine Education Center and professor of pediatrics in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the Maurice R. Hilleman Professor of Vaccinology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. He served on the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee until abruptly being removed last August and had been on the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Dr. Offit co-invented the lifesaving rotavirus vaccine, RotaTeq, which is recommended universally for use in infants. Co-inventor Dr. Stanley A. Plotkin has praised Dr. Offit for his “courageous stance against anti-vaccinationism” and his work “to foster vaccination and to counter unfounded fears.”
Dr. Offit was a member of the Food and Drug Administration Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, an advisor to the Autism Science Foundation and the Foundation for Vaccine Research, a member of the Institute of Medicine and co-editor of the leading textbook, Vaccines. He has published more than 160 papers in medical and scientific journals, many on vaccine safety.
In 2023, Dr. Offit was elected to membership in the prestigious American Philosophical Society (APS), which has contributed to American cultural and intellectual life for more than 250 years. Other members of the Philadelphia-based organization were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Edison. Another member and former president of the APS was Dr. Baruch Blumberg, the Nobel Laureate who played a key role in building the Hepatitis B Foundation.
Dr. Offit’s many other awards include the Young Investigator Award in Vaccine Development from the Infectious Disease Society of America, a Research Career Development Award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Sabin Vaccine Institute Gold Medal. In 2009, Dr. Offit received the President’s Certificate for Outstanding Service from the American Academy of Pediatrics. In 2011, he received the Humanitarian of the Year Award from the Biologics Industry Organization (BIO). In 2015, he was elected to the American Association of Physicians and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences as well as being named as a Fellow of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society and the American Academy for the Advancement of Science. In 2018, he was named to the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
An author who writes for parents and others in the broader community, Dr. Offit’s work is highly regarded. Among his many publications are Deadly Choices: How the Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All (Basic Books, 2011); Do You Believe in Magic?: The Sense and Nonsense of Alternative Medicine (HarperCollins, 2013), which was selected by National Public Radio as one of the best books of 2013; and Bad Advice: Or Why Celebrities, Politicians, and Activists Aren’t Your Best Source of Health Information (Columbia University Press, 2018).
About hepatitis B – The most common serious liver infection in the world, this disease is caused by the hepatitis B virus, which attacks and damages the liver. Each year more than 1 million people die from hepatitis B worldwide, even though it is preventable and treatable. Hepatitis B is a “silent epidemic” because most people do not have symptoms when they are newly or chronically infected. Thus, they can unknowingly infect others and continue the spread of hepatitis B. For people who are chronically infected but don’t have any symptoms, their livers are still being silently damaged, which can develop into serious liver diseases such as cirrhosis or liver cancer.
About the Hepatitis B Foundation – Our vision is a world free of hepatitis B and liver cancer. As the world’s leading hepatitis B advocacy and research organization, the Hepatitis B Foundation is one of the most active proponents of improving hepatitis B screening, prevention and treatment of the disease. We are the only nonprofit organization solely dedicated to finding a cure for hepatitis B and improving the quality of life for those affected worldwide through research, education and patient advocacy. Founded in 1991, the Hepatitis B Foundation is based in Doylestown, Pa., with staff in Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia. To learn more, go to www.hepb.org, read our blog, follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (@hepbfoundation) or contact us through info@hepb.org or 215-489-4900.