Vaccinating Children Should Be Mandatory Essay

Imagine two children; one who has been completely vaccinated, and the other has never been vaccinated. Both children fall ill from the same virus, but the child who had been vaccinated fully recovers, while the child who was not passes away due to complications. That child’s life could have been saved if the child received the proper vaccinations. Ever since the invention of the Smallpox vaccine more than two centuries ago, there has been an abundance of controversy over the morality, ethics, effectiveness, and safety of vaccinations and immunizations. It has recently been argued whether laws should be introduced that render some or all vaccines mandatory for all children. Parents, health care specialists, nurses, teachers, and children

Now, as stated above, misinformation fuels the anti-vaccination movement. The largest source of said misinformation is the abundance of zany conspiracy theories that pervade the Internet. Although there are many stories vaccination opponents cling to, the primary source of modern falsehoods is a fraudulent article published in 1998 by Dr. Andrew Wakefield in The Lancet, a renowned peer-reviewed medical journal. In his article, Wakefield described how his research showed a correlation between the onset of autism symptoms in children and the injection of the mumps, measles, and rubella vaccine. However, as Wakefield was found to have a slew of undeclared conflicts of interest and heavily manipulated results, The Lancet fully retracted his article in 2010, and his medical license was revoked (Douglas et al, 2014). At this point, however, the damage had already been done. The media carelessly circulated stories about Wakefield’s now-discredited article using sensationalist, fear-mongering headlines. The remnants of this massive reporting blunder now float in cyberspace like asteroids, colliding with parents worried about the safety of their children. These “asteroids” often convince naïve parents that childhood vaccinations are dangerous by implementing vicious scare tactics. Needless to say, nobody

Influenza is very contagious and spreads rapidly from person to person. Influenza causes worldwide yearly epidemics. According to World Health organization Influenza affects 5-15% world’s population and resulting in 500,000 deaths yearly. Ottenberg stated that, in United States, an average of 200,000 were hospitalized and 36,000 died each year from influenza complications. Influenza is the sixth leading cause of death among US adults and is related to 1 in 20 death in persons older than 65 years. Disease control and prevention estimates indicate that infections like H1N1 which is one of the types of influenza, have resulted in an estimated 42 to 86 million cases and 8520 to 17620 deaths. As I mentioned earlier that infections like

Immunizations protect children from dangerous diseases, which include: diphtheria, meningitis, tetanus, polio, measles, and the whooping cough (Vaccines, 2015). The controversial debate arose in 1998 concerning a link between the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine and autism by Andrew Wakefield. However, his claims and theories on the matter has been discredited due to his

Vaccination is a process by which an individual is made immune to a particular pathogen, typically via injection. To understand vaccines, it is best to first understand how the human immune system works. In his book, Immunobiology (2001) Charles Janeway, a notable immunologist, states that there are two arms to the human immune

Everyone in the United States who is not apart of a religious group--in which vaccination will infringe upon their beliefs--should receive vaccinations to ensure the safety of American citizens. For instance, when one schedules an annual physical, he/she may immediately think of vaccines. Young children may whine and teenagers may gripe. “Do I really need a shot mom?” One grumpy teenager or child might ask. The mother, in a typical setting, will say yes. The parent will not reply yes because they wish to hear his/her child complain about a sore arm for the next three days; no, the parent allows the nurse to administer the shot because the vaccine is recommended. In fact, vaccines have been a proven and effective way to protect the human race against diseases. With the intention of preventing diseases, listening to recommendation by qualified physicians and nurses could mean the difference between life and death for other children.

Between 1924 and 2013, vaccinations prevented 103 million cases of polio, measles, rubella, mumps, hepatitis A, diphtheria, and pertussis (Bailey). Vaccinating is “the process by which pathogenic cells are injected into a healthy person in an attempt to cause the body to develop antibodies to a particular virus or bacterium—successful creation of antibodies is referred to as immunity to the disease caused by the particular pathogen” (Introduction to Should Vaccinations be Mandatory). Popular conflicts regarding vaccination include the worry that this form of immunization isn’t natural, the idea that vaccination schedule for children in the U.S. takes away parents’ rights to make decisions for their children, and the concern that vaccinations aren’t safe for all children. Most doctors and scientists advocate for vaccinations in the name of herd immunity, protection against foreign diseases and prevention against pockets of disease outbreaks. Vaccinations should be mandatory for all children in the United States for who they are deemed safe and effective.

I believe that vaccinations should be mandatory for younger children, so they are safe, reduce the risk of illness, and protect other people from contagious diseases. Children are more likely to get sick from being around other children at school or daycare. I think that all children should be protected. The best way to protect children is to make sure that they are vaccinated and receive yearly check-ups. Vaccines for children are very important to protect children from infections and is a safeguard for children’s health.

Pennsylvania like many other states have a list of mandatory vaccinations; if students are going to be publicly active in school they need to get vaccinated. However, unlike West Virginia and Mississippi who only allow medical exemptions, Pennsylvania allows medical and religious exemptions. Therefore, Pennsylvania vaccinations laws require some mandates as well as allow some exemptions. First, Pennsylvania laws do not require parents to vaccinate their children; it is the parents decision. “Children need not be immunized if the parent, guardian or emancipated child objects in writing to the immunization on religious grounds or on the basis of a strong moral or ethical conviction similar to a religious belief. Medical exemptions are also

In the 1950s, the polio vaccine was introduced and life in America was forever changed. We vaccinated children against polio and many other diseases and America as a whole became a much healthier place. Soon, parents could quite reasonably expect to have a happy and healthy child. Vaccines were like miracle drugs. Then, in 1998, everything changed. Andrew Wakefield, a physician from the United Kingdom, published a study stating that he had found a link between the MMR vaccine and autism. Thus began the dangerous trend of refusing vaccines for children. Although many people believe vaccines to be dangerous, in fact, they are one of the safest medical procedures done.

One argument is vaccines can cause serious side effects (Plotkin). Anaphylaxis and allergic reactions are not extremely uncommon, and a scientist in the 1990s claimed the MMR (Mumps, Measles, Rubella) vaccine is the leading cause of autism in young children (Vaccines Procon.org). While this is true, there have been copious amounts of research done, and everything has shown that there is no correlation between autism and vaccines (MMR and Autism). In reference to other side effects, the chances of them occurring are very low, and often not as extreme as the side effects of the diseases they protect against. A second reason people believe they should be able to choose whether or not to be vaccinated is vaccines can be against some people’s beliefs. Some religious beliefs prevent people from accepting vaccinations, as well as some people who are vegan or do not eat eggs. These people tend to decline vaccines made from such products (Omer). As for the explanation, many vaccines are offered in ways that do not conflict with beliefs, and for patients who have a conflict with eggs, the CDC still strongly recommends receiving vaccines because the vaccines typically only contain trace amounts of the product (Influenza

Over the years, there has been much controversy surrounding the subject of childhood vaccinations. With differing opinions, many are in favor about childhood vaccinations being required for children. Children vaccinations have been proven to be an effective means of preventing serious effects, including fatalities, from childhood illnesses yet there is still controversy over whether the risk of side effects from the vaccines outweighs the risk of contracting diseases. The belief behind mandatory vaccinations has been linked to people wanting vaccinations to be required for children because it will prevent the spread of childhood diseases, but there are still questions and concerns around why childhood vaccinations should be required. Questions surrounding this topic are: why should vaccines be required, are there any serious risks involved in vaccinating your child, and should children be turned away from school if they do not have vaccinations? There is also the question of should these vaccinations be mandatory or should this solely be a choice that the parents of the child should make? In order for us to be able to take our stance on the subject, we need to examine the answers to the question.

As a child, everyone remembers having to get shots. My first memorable experience with shots came at age four. I didn’t understand why I needed shots. All I knew was this sharp thing was going to be stuck in my arm and it was going to hurt. Before I got my four year old shots I received my first set of vaccines, vaccines that people are now claiming are dangerous. Research shows that vaccination rates fell. MMR (mumps, measles, and rubella) vaccine rates dropped from 93.5% to 90.6%, tetanus, whooping cough and diphtheria rates dropped from 87.2% to 85.4% in 2009. (Kluger) Why are vaccination rates dropping so significantly? Pediatrician Dr. Robert Frenck says “Very articulate, very good-looking movie stars or personalities … are giving

We have all raised our eyebrows when the person sitting the row behind us starts coughing, and not just the “soda went down the wrong pipe” cough, but the real, mucus breaking, uncontrollable hacking. Likewise, many of us have also tried to not get too close to the person with the visibly red, irritated nose and the constant sniffling that comes with the absence of a tissue. As a society, we tend to be conscious of the threat of contracting a disease, but regardless of these common concerns, opposition to mandated vaccinations for school-attending children continue to be raised. The effectiveness and overall safety of vaccines have repeatedly been questioned by society (especially when it comes to vaccinating infants and young children), and some studies have possibly even shown the danger of certain vaccinations. However, upon closer examination, it is clear that vaccines have prevented more disease and have improved the overall health of the United States, and consequently, should—with few exceptions—continue to be mandated in our school system.

Parents face many different decisions when raising a child; some decisions are trivial, and others can be controversial. Whether or not to vaccinate a child is one of the most controversial choices. So controversial, in fact, that there is a political conversation of making immunizations a requirement. Many people support the movement of making vaccinations mandatory. Proponents argue that vaccines save lives, vaccine-preventable diseases have not been eradicated, and vaccines protect herd immunity. Many people also disagree with the possibility of required vaccinations. Opponents argue that vaccines cause harm, immunity by vaccinations is inferior to natural immunity, and government policies should not dictate personal medical choices.