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Vaccination Research Paper

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Vaccines: A Simple Solution to a Common Problem According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, the United States of America reported 668 cases of measles in 2014, the most cases annually since 2000 ("Measles Vaccination"). As of April 3, 2015, there have been 159 cases in America ("Measles Cases and Outbreaks"). The most recent major outbreak that has gained enormous media attention is the Disneyland outbreak, and approximately 146 have been infected with the virus that has been linked to the amusement park ("Measles Cases and Outbreaks"). Medical officials traced the major 2014 outbreak to an Amish community in Ohio that did not vaccinate themselves or their children. ("Measles Cases and Outbreaks"). The primary problem that …show more content…

Upon examining the beliefs of those who choose not to be vaccinated, there are mainly religious and personal beliefs. Although every major world religion accepts the use of vaccinations, various religious sects and communities completely avoid vaccinations because they go against their religious beliefs (Haelle). Many Christian groups believe that vaccinating themselves directly violates 1 Corinthians 6:19 because they would be injecting foreign chemicals into their bodies, which is a temple of the Lord (Horowitz). They also believe that vaccinations are against Luke 13:1-5 because they would be mixing their blood with the blood of "sacrificed animals" (Horowitz). The biggest problem with these groups is that they tend to live in communities together (Castillo); this is evident especially in Amish and Mennonite communities. The problem was also identified in the 2014 Ohio outbreak. This creates an extremely dangerous zone because the disease can rapidly spread through households, neighborhoods, and schools in the community (Castillo). These people have personal beliefs, but they can distort Scripture or take it out of context to make their personal beliefs …show more content…

Many people believe that a school, workplace, et cetera should not be able to enforce the people present to be vaccinated (Jake Novak). Some Libertarians believe issues like epidemics require government intervention, but others believe it is a violation of every citizens' personal rights (Jake Novak). Former congressman Ron Paul stated, "Giving the government the power to override parental decisions regarding vaccines will inevitably lead to further restrictions on liberties," (Jake Novak). Many people, especially people belonging to anti-vaccination religious sects, use the Constitution to protect their beliefs. They argue that the "Establishment Clause" and "Free-Exercise Clause" found in the first amendment, along with the "Equal Protection of the Law" in the fourteenth amendment, protect their right not to vaccinate (Tolsma). The Supreme Court deemed both of these arguments irrelevant to the original meanings of the amendments (Tolsma). "Herd immunity," or "herd affect," is the decreased risk of disease spreading due to the majority already being vaccinated (Corum et al.). Many find this a valid reason to not be vaccinated. They are not against vaccinations, but they believe it is easier, both with their time and money, to be protected by those around them. The Autism scare originally came

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