Why Should Vaccines Be Mandatory?(Revision 2nd 2Fer)

By: Guy Peart

A vaccine is given to people to develop anti-bodies to provide immunity from diseases. A reason to why someone would want to do this, is to prevent the spread of diseases, but should people have a choice about getting a vaccination? Many people believe that vaccines should be mandatory, arguing that the safety of the general population trumps any other concern. However, this mindset discounts the population who have deep investment in their religion and beliefs. These reasons are not excuses, they are valid. Vaccines should be optional because the religious and personal beliefs of citizens are more important than public safety.

There are many ways that people can avoid vaccinations, some reasons being more serious than others. One is religion. Religious Americans are often exempt from vaccines, which raise the public eye. Mississippi and West Virginia allow parents to skip vaccinations for non-medical reasons. Some states offer a “personal belief” exemption from vaccination and the option of a “religious exemption.” (Some states have both.)(Slate.com)There are many religious beliefs that hold many people from receiving vaccinations.  So whether having the option, or religious belief, people have found ways to avoid vaccines, even if it is not medically endorsed. Americans should have the choice if they want to receive a vaccination or not, plus religion to many people is key. If religious people don’t want vaccinations due to their beliefs, than those people should not have to take vaccinations, even if it is a concern to the public. This is important because the United States of America was founded on the idea of freedom, religious freedom. If people cannot practice their religion uninterrupted, than that is violating what the United States was destined to be.

If the disease isn’t much of a threat and the vaccine could cause serious diseases that make not getting the vaccine even worth it in the first place. “Opponents say that children’s immune systems can deal with most infections naturally, and that injecting questionable vaccine ingredients into a child may cause side effects, including seizures, paralysis, and death.   Vaccines have been proven to save millions of lives and prevent quarantines, but they are not always necessary to use. Every time that a child receives a vaccine there is a chance with some children that could potentially,cause serious harm. If the vaccine is not professionally recommended, than it is not really worth the chance of a seizure, autism, or worse. According to Sarah from thehealthyhomeeconomist, there are many harmful chemicals in vaccines

Vaccines are created to save lives, prevent the spread of diseases, and even build permanent immunity from that set of diseases. According to the leading source of controversial issues, ProCon.org, “Proponents say that vaccination is safe and one of the greatest health developments of the 20th century. They point out that illnesses, including rubella, diphtheria, smallpox, polio, and whooping cough, are now prevented by vaccination and millions of children’s lives are saved.” After all, vaccinations have been around for centuries. According to the CDC, 732,000 American children were saved from death and 322 million cases of childhood illnesses were prevented between 1994 and 2014 due to vaccination. There have also been cases where an absence of vaccinations negatively affected the community. Debate.org states that around Los Angeles, more than 60% of pre-schoolers are unvaccinated, giving the area a vaccination rate comparable to the South Sudan. California recorded more than 60 cases of measles last year, and has 79 just in the first month of this year. Vaccines have an important effect on the country, and have saved over a million children alone. Even though it should be the consumer's choice to get the vaccination, there are definite benefits to getting a vaccination, and it can save anyone's life. When a vaccination is recommended, using it could be a crucial decision, but people’s personal beliefs should be their priority.

Vaccines should be considered for all children that attend public institutions, but not required. Vaccines can save lives, but are not always necessary. People should have the choice to get vaccinations, because of religious and philosophical beliefs. In a few rare cases vaccines have lead to seizures, death, and believed to develop autism. If not completely recommended by a doctor, and a family does not want to participate, then they should also have the option to opt to exemption from vaccines because of the possible side-effects.

Sources:

1.)"Should Any Vaccines Be Required for Children?" ProCon.org. ProCon.org, 10 June 2015. Web. 6 Oct. 2015. <http://vaccines.procon.org/>.

2.)"Should Childhood Immunization Be Optional?" Debate.org. Debate.org, 2015. Web. 6 Oct. 2015. <http://www.debate.org/opinions/should-childhood-immunization-be-optional>.

3.)Krule, Miriam. "Why Is There a Religious Exemption for Vaccines?" Slate. The Slate Group, 5 Feb. 2015. Web. 8 Oct. 2015. <http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_examiner/2015/02/religious_exemption_for_vaccines_christian_scientists_catholics_and_dutch.html>.

4.)"Six Reasons to Say NO to Vaccinations." The Healthy Home Economist. Austus Media, 2015. Web. 8 Nov. 2015. <http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/six-reasons-to-say-no-to-vaccination/>