Illinois health officials are reminding parents  they should get hepatitis A protection for their children.

The rate of child immunizations for hepatitis A is increasing, almost doubling nationally from 26 percent in 2006 to 47 percent in 2007.

The increase was attributed to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices in 2006 recommending immunization for all children

The American Society for Microbiology (ASM) Maurice Hilleman/Merck Award has gone to Stanley A. Plotkin, M.D., Professor Emeritus, Wistar Institute and the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, for his lifetime of dedication to vaccinology, including his role in developing vaccines for Hepatitis A.

This award, established in the memory of Maurice Hilleman, honors major contributions to