Vaccines Should Be Mandatory Essay

First, immunizations should be mandatory because they can save a child’s life. Because of the great success of medical professionals and scientists, children are able to live longer, healthier, and more fulfilling lives. Without vaccines children can get deadly diseases such as polio. There are about five hundred worldwide cases of polio today.

To Vaccinate or not to vaccinate, has been a question many parents in America have been asking themselves for years. Some parents believe that it is their right to decide if their children will be vaccinated; while some states believe that all children should be vaccinated. There are logical and illogical reasons for this argument. There should be a federal law that requires parents to vaccinate their children because it will lower the number of deaths, benefit those children who have lower immune systems, and it can get rid of some diseases all together in the future.

Recently, many diseases that had been eradicated because of childhood vaccinations have been making an appearance. Health officials are concerned that diseases will spread and lives will be lost. Officials all agree that vaccinations will benefit the population. Some parents feel it is an infringement on the right to keep the children healthy and safe. Vaccinations should be mandatory for all children because it will prevent diseases from spreading, protect future generations, and save children and parents time and money.

Diseases and illnesses are studied constantly by doctors and scientists trying to find a cure for them. Plague and disease once ravaged our world killing thousands, with no hope or cure to prevent them from occurring. Today, however, is different. Technology is more advanced than ever, and people are living longer than ever before. Life expectancy in the United States has gone up by more than 30 years in the last decades. It isn’t by luck that many diseases now cease to exist, but through extensive studies, and research. The medical field is at the height of its studies with more people being cured of diseases than ever before. Most of this is to the credit of doctors and scientists developing vaccinations that help the body create antibodies, which help fight away diseases, and give the body immunity. I believe that forced vaccinations in children should be mandatory as they have the potential to prevent life threatening diseases, and save countless lives. Though many are against forced vaccinations and say they can cause mental illnesses or brain damage, this has not been proven. The rewards far out way the slight risk, if risk at all of the vaccination having side effects. The individuals who are not vaccinated are left vulnerable to illness, and can potentially infect those around them as well. Leaving scare of an epidemic, and wide spread of a virus. Forced vaccinations in the United States have been beneficial by preventing young children from contracting certain

Vaccinations have been shown to prevent many diseases, including measles, mumps, pertussis, polio, varicella, and influenza (CDC, 2009). According to Shot@Life, a United Nations partner program, vaccines stop around 2.5 million children from developing preventable diseases each year (ProCon.org,

Roughly over the last sixteen years, many parents have chosen to not vaccinate their children, putting other children at risk. This has been a huge debate across our country for many years now. Vaccinations should be mandatory and children should be completely up to date with all vaccinations before being allowed to attend school.

The question is, should the government mandate vaccines? Those in favor of child vaccinations, believe that they are the greatest health developments of the 20th century. While those against them believe that a child’s immune system permits either a natural or acquired resistance to diseases than putting questionable toxic ingredients into a child’s body. In the US, 50 states require vaccinations for children entering public schools, though no mandatory federal vaccination laws exist. 50 states issue medical exemptions only (1), 48 states (excluding Mississippi and West Virginia) permit religious exemptions, and 31 states exclude Philosophical exemptions. (2)

Some may argue that vaccines are unsafe and unnatural, but vaccinations are vital in keeping our country a safe and healthy place to live. Although all parents are worried about the safety and well-being of their children, parents need to vaccinate their children, for their children’s and our country’s safety. If vaccinations become mandatory it could save lives. Mandatory vaccinations will save the lives of the people who are medically ineligible to receive all vaccines and protect our future generations from having to fight off deadly diseases. All citizens of the United States need to come together for the greater good of our country and vaccinate all eligible

Vaccines can save the lives of children who mean the world to their parents. According to “Should Any Vaccines Be Required for Children?” the author states, “vaccines save 2.5 million children from preventable diseases every year, which equates to roughly 285 children saved every year.” That would be a lot of kids that everyone loves that would pass away if they didn't receive a vaccine. The author state, “The measles vaccine has decreased childhood deaths from measles by 74%.” This proves that vaccines can really save a lot of lives If parents love their children as much as most parents, then they will get them vaccinated.

Vaccinating children has become an issue many parents are taking personally and debating on a regular basis. Several parents vaccinate their children, but do they really know what they are vaccinating for? Most vaccines are necessary for children to gain immunity. Immunity from severe diseases that are part of our history, such as: Measles, Polio, Pertussis, and Diphtheria are essential to everyone. Vaccinating for these serious diseases is a must to keep children healthy. However, history of the vaccine issue has been an ongoing topic for many years. But, most parents have not questioned vaccines until recently. The issue has changed over time since people have become more easily persuaded against vaccines. This has parents wondering how effective they really are, and if they are safe enough to distribute to children. Not to mention, the childhood diseases in question have not been around in decades. Parents want to understand the importance of prevention in something thought to be long gone. Above all, the importance of vaccines is significant in this country, and to all who live here. Furthermore, avoiding vaccines will leave the United States vulnerable to serious diseases, in which were once eradicated. Vaccinations are crucial to the regulation and the annihilation of fatal infectious diseases, not to just the child receiving the vaccine, but to all in the community. Thus, vaccinations should be mandated for all children in the U.S.

Huge outbreaks like polio,measles, and the chicken pox diseases that have killed millions of children and adults no longer occur due to breakthroughs with vaccines. Children start to be vaccinated by the age of two until they are an adult, preventing theses diseases and many other vaccine preventable diseases.There are some who choose not to vaccinate their children or themselves, risking the health of the public.Refusing to vaccinate can cause many problems and risk for a child or an adult they take the risk of getting sick and possibly getting another person sick.Vaccinations should be mandated to prevent children and adults from getting vaccine preventable diseases and sickness.

While this is a logical statement, “vaccines cost less in time and money to obtain than infectious diseases cost in time off of work to care for a sick child, potential long-term disability care, and medical costs” (Vaccines). An outbreak of measles in San Diego, California “resulted in 11 unvaccinated children catching measles and a resulting net public-sector cost of $10,376 per case (or, $123,512 total) due to emergency vaccination and outbreak response” (Vaccines). A dose of MMR vaccine from the CDC cost about twenty dollars which is substantially cheaper than if you had the disease and had to treat it. Vaccines also save lives (Vaccines). If it were not for vaccines, people may not be able to live to actually use their personal rights. For these reasons, vaccines should be mandatory for all ages.

There are mountains of evidence that suggest vaccinations are much needed and well worth the risk in order to protect oneself. Thus, there should be some sort of intervention that mandates vaccines for everyone. It in fact is more dangerous to not get vaccinated. According to David M. Perry, an associate professor at dominican university, an information database currently aimed to track the effects of the anti-vaccine movement has cited over 100,000 cases of preventable illnesses and 1,000 cases of preventable deaths in the past fifty years. (“The Anti-Vaccine”). 100,00 cases of preventable illness is not a number to be scoffed at. According to this research had the anti-vaccine movement not existed this number would be zero. Due to people believing that vaccines cause more harm than good we are seeing these astronomical numbers of diseases that should not exist in the first place. The fact is that vaccines are well worth the risks they pose especially since the alternative to the possible side effects is preventable and possibly previously eradicated disease. Some of these preventable diseases include deadly ones as seen in the 1,000 people who have died because of this dangerous movement. If the options are between getting a vaccine and potentially dying the obvious right answer is facing the needle. In addition to being great at preventing preventable

There has been an ample amount of dispute over the morality, effectiveness and the safety of vaccination ever since the original smallpox vaccine over two centuries ago. Parents, teachers, children and health care specialists all have a vital stake in this debate. Parents believe they should have the right to make the decision on whether or not to vaccinate their children. While health care officials disagree, claiming that by not vaccinating, all children will be susceptible to the vaccine-preventable diseases. Megan Heimer discusses the risk of vaccinating a child and that it should not be mandatory in her article, “The Hate Debate”. Although Megan Heimer writes a relatively convincing argument, I strongly disagree. I believe that vaccination should be mandatory. It is a parents’ responsibility to protect our children and future generations from these preventable diseases.

In the United States, vaccines are estimated to save 42,000 Americans each year from harmful diseases. Vaccines have been around for about 1,000 years and parents have disputed whether or not vaccinations should be mandatory or their own personal decision. Some parents believe that without vaccinations other children and adults are putting others at risk for diseases. But some parents disagree and think that they simply don’t do anything to help prevent diseases.