The Problem:
Since our founding as a nation in 1776, the medical community in the United States has repeatedly documented the value of immunization for various kinds of preventable diseases.
Yet even with the high rate of compliance of vaccination for children, there are a significant number of young children in the U.S. who have not been fully vaccinated with the most critical of vaccines. Our text attributes lack of proper immunization to: cost, lack of access to vaccines, uneducated parents and
confusion over the CDC- recommended vaccine schedule.
Added to these four items, there are a persistent number of parents who continue to refuse to immunize their children due to religious objections and/or fears that vaccines will cause mental disorders (such as autism) in their children.
Questions :
1. If the compliance rate for vaccinations among school children is so high in most U.S. communities, why should parents and local school systems be so concerned over the fact that more children aren’t vaccinated? Or should they be concerned at all? Could anything really bad happen if 5-10% of children 0-6 years of age aren’t vaccinated?
2. If a parent maintains that their children should acquire immunization “naturally” by getting any disease once as “immunization”, should any kind of Authority—the public or private schools, community school requirements, or even other concerned parents– be able to force parents to comply with what the community school system requires? Why should/shouldn’t local authorities have this right?
3. If parents are objecting to children being vaccinated on the basis of religion, should parents be forced to comply with the law anyway? Would forcing parents/their children to comply violate any of the First 10 Amendments to our Constitution (our Bill of Rights) such as Freedom of Religion or Due Process? Explain.
