Editorial: Vaccination requirements must be enforced
October 29th, 2008Writing on behalf of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution editorial board, Mike King calls for enforcement of laws requiring schoolchildren to be vaccinated. He says too many parents are willfully ignoring immunization requirements because of unfounded fears about a connection between autism and vaccines, posing a broad threat to the health of the public.
An excerpt:
No doubt many parents have sincerely held beliefs, but allowing them to opt out of vaccination puts the lives of their children at risk as well as the lives of others.
Vaccinations for infectious childhood diseases are one of the greatest accomplishments of medical science, saving millions of lives annually. But their effectiveness is directly linked to coverage that is as universal as possible.
The vaccine-autism link has been thoroughly debunked. States should not back off mandatory vaccination laws, and local school districts and health departments should do a better job of enforcing compliance.
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November 6th, 2008 at 4:55 pm
Not all vaccines are safe or necessary, be informed as to what is being injected inot your loved ones
October 29th, 2008 at 3:37 pm
I would have to agree with Mike King, the reason these diseases aren’t wide spread and have mostly been eradicated is because of vaccinations. I had to provide proof of MMR immunizations before being accepted into college and that makes sense, doesn’t it?
Schools are breeding grounds for viruses and diseases, whether is Pre-k or a University, not immunizing could be disastrous. Schools should have strict guidelines on immunization, remember it’s not only your child who may get seriously ill.
If your a parent who is concerned about the safety of vaccines than you should probably do the research and talk to your doctor. The side-effects of vaccines are minuscule compared to the diseases they prevent. What do you think would happen if we all stopped immunizing? Welcome back diphtheria…