The Anti-Vaccination Movement

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Science and medicine have come a long way since 1796, when Edward Jenner developed the practice of vaccination. Dedicated vaccination campaigns have managed to eradicate many diseases that once were unstoppable. However, over the last couple of decades, hostility against the practice of vaccination has emerged. By showing the causes of the anti-vaccination movement, parents will see how irrational it is to not vaccinate children.
Vaccines came into prominence in the mid-20th century as a way to combat common diseases. Children were vaccinated with only a few vaccines at the time: in 1970, only 3 vaccines were required. A common vaccine was MMR, to protect against measles, mumps, and rubella. These vaccines were widely accepted by parents until …show more content…

Kessick’s son had autism, and she thought the MMR vaccine caused his disorder. Wakefield conducted a study to determine any possible link between bowel disease, the MMR vaccine, and developmental disorders: “We identified associated gastrointestinal disease and developmental regression in a group of previously normal children, which was generally associated in time with possible environmental triggers” (Wakefield p.4). He concluded those environmental triggers were the increased presence of the MMR vaccine in the British population of children. Wakefield’s study was published in acclaimed peer-reviewed medical journal The Lancet, and later he gave a press conference calling for the suspension of using the MMR vaccine. The impact immediately hit Britain and the United States: “Immunization rates in Britain dropped from 92 percent to 73 percent [...] researchers have estimated that as many as …show more content…

Should immunizations be required or should it be up to parents? It is hard to draw the line between choice and necessity when that choice has the possibility of creating a health crisis. The decreasing amounts of vaccinated children directly impacts public health, as unvaccinated children are more likely to get and spread diseases. In recent years, outbreaks of diseases like measles and whooping cough have contributed to rising concerns about vaccinations. “In 2014, 23 measles outbreaks occurred in 27 states — causing the highest number of cases since the disease had supposedly been eliminated in 2000” (Lemons p.9). These outbreaks lead legislators to introduce mandatory immunization bills—like California’s SB277, which makes it illegal to enroll in schools or daycare without required vaccinations. Opposition arose from those saying that the bill took away the personal freedom to not be vaccinated. But what is the value in that

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