To the United States Congress and the National Institutes of Health (NIH):

Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a highly contagious viral illness that affects thousands of American families, particularly those with infants and young children.

One reason HFMD spreads so easily is that people can transmit the virus before they show symptoms. In our case, my son was exposed on a Wednesday, but he did not develop his first symptoms until Sunday. During those days, we were around other children and families without knowing that he had been exposed. This uncertainty is dangerous and adds significant stress for parents who may unknowingly expose others before realizing their child is sick.

Although many cases resolve without complications, HFMD can cause painful blisters, high fevers, difficulty eating and drinking, and significant discomfort. Outbreaks can spread rapidly through daycare centers, schools, and households, disrupting family life and forcing parents to miss work.

As a mother, I am writing this petition after watching my young son suffer through the worst illness he has ever experienced. This disease has caused him the highest fever he has ever had and left him more uncomfortable than I have ever seen him.

He has painful sores and blisters throughout his body. It is painful to bathe him or apply any kind of cream or lotion to his skin. The sores in his mouth have caused uncontrollable drooling, and he has refused milk because eating and drinking are so uncomfortable. We cannot take him outside because of the risk of infection and complications involving his open sores and blisters.

We are now on day five, and he is still developing more sores. Sometimes the sores on his feet are so painful that he stumbles while walking. As parents, it is emotionally distressing to watch our child suffer and be unable to make the pain go away. At the same time, we see how strong he is. Despite everything he is experiencing, he continues to show a positive attitude and keeps trying to be himself.

The illness has also affected us as parents. We have now developed strong symptoms ourselves. Because there is no routine testing for HFMD, we cannot absolutely confirm that our symptoms are caused by the same virus, but the timing and progression are consistent with exposure. We have tested negative for COVID-19, influenza, and strep throat.

Our experience has shown us how quickly this disease can affect an entire household—and how easily exposure can occur before anyone knows they are infected. It is not simply a mild childhood illness when you are watching your child struggle with fever, pain, dehydration risk, mouth sores, and difficulty walking. Families need better prevention, better research, and better protection.

What concerns me most is that vaccines against certain HFMD-causing viruses already exist in parts of Asia, yet no HFMD vaccine is currently approved in the United States.

Researchers are working toward vaccines that protect against multiple viruses responsible for HFMD. These scientific advances deserve greater attention and support before more families have to endure what ours is experiencing.

We respectfully urge Congress and federal health agencies to:

Increase federal funding for research and development of safe, effective vaccines against the major viruses causing HFMD.
Support and accelerate clinical research, including multivalent vaccine trials, while maintaining rigorous safety and efficacy standards.
Prioritize pediatric infectious-disease prevention and evaluate opportunities for international scientific collaboration.
Improve public-health surveillance, education, and support for families affected by HFMD, including better information about symptoms, transmission, the possibility of presymptomatic spread, complications, and prevention.
We recognize that vaccine development requires careful testing and regulatory review. Our request is not to bypass those protections, but to provide researchers with the resources needed to advance promising vaccines efficiently and safely.

No parent should have to watch their child endure this level of pain and discomfort while having so few options for prevention. No family should be left feeling isolated and unprepared as the illness spreads through the household—or wondering whether they unknowingly exposed other children and families before symptoms appeared.

American families deserve greater attention to a disease that repeatedly affects young children, childcare communities, and entire households.

We ask our elected representatives to take meaningful steps toward funding HFMD vaccine research and development.

Please sign this petition to demonstrate public support for making HFMD vaccine research a national public-health priority. By signing, you can help show lawmakers that families want stronger prevention, more research, better public-health information, and greater protection against HFMD.