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Essay Against Vaccination

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America is known to be the land of the free. Free to worship ones religion without persecution, free to practice ones customs without judgment, and free to achieve ones dreams without restriction. The question is; where does this freedom reach its limits? What if our freedom of choice negatively impacts another person? The recent outbreak of the measles at Disneyland in California in January 2015 questions the limits of freedom in the US. A total of “51 measles cases linked to Disneyland” were reported in the outbreak (Ellis, et al). The outbreak was “spread among those who had not been vaccinated against the virus. Overall, 82% of those infected in this outbreak were not vaccinated, either because they're too young or because they elected not to be” (Ellis, et al). Some parents choose not to vaccinate their children with MMR vaccine that prevents against Measles, Mumps, and Rubella because they believe that the vaccine may be more of a dangerous than the disease. However, the choice not to vaccinate not only affects the susceptible child but also …show more content…

Getting the recommended vaccinations is essential for public health and safety, especially in this global world as vaccinations are an effective way of reducing and even eliminating diseases. “Before widespread vaccination, measles caused an estimated 2.6 million deaths each year. Since the measles vaccine was introduced in 1963, ongoing measles transmission was declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000” (Immunize For Good). The extreme reduction in cases in the US after the vaccine was distributed is evidence of the effectiveness of the vaccine in preventing the measles. Even if there is a slight risk associated with the MMR vaccine, the vaccine is still the safer choice when choosing to vaccinate one’s child for both the child and for the population as a

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