This is a topic that is near to my heart on many fronts. I understand both sides of this debate, however, I do firmly believe that the greater good should always outweigh the rights or privileges of individuals. When I was six weeks old, I was given the Hepatitis B vaccine. I had a very serious allergic reaction, and I was hospitalized for two weeks. I periodically stopped breathing, and I developed sleep apnea. It was decided definitively that this was a reaction to the vaccine. Additionally, my mother had a severe reaction to the flu shot in 2015, and developed a nerve disorder because of it. Though to some people these instances might provide support to the anti vaccine movement, I personally believe that these are two examples of why people should be vaccinated.The majority of people do not have these severe reactions, and are completely able to be vaccinated. If everyone who can safely be vaccinated received their vaccinations, they would be protecting those of us who cannot do so.
I have two friends with AutoImmune Disorders, neither of whom can be vaccinated due to their immune systems. I have watched both of them taste death because of illnesses as simple as a cold. Society is wreaking havoc over temporary mask mandates, but my friends have been wearing masks in public from the time they could walk. In the documentary, The Vaccine War, one of the anti-vaxx mothers argued that since diseases such as Polio no longer exist in the U.S, it makes no sense that children still need the vaccine. Excuse my lack of formality here, but I desperately wanted to slap her across the face through the screen. Polio is gone because of the vaccine. If we stop vaccinating against it, and someone from another country comes to the U.S with Polio, we will have to start the whole process over. We vaccinate because it works.
I understand that parents are scared. There are a ton of chemicals in vaccines, and I do think that they need to be improved. However, and I say this as a future mother, I would rather have a child with Autism than a dead child. Speaking of Autism and vaccines, it drives me crazy that people still use Dr.Wakefield as a reference even though he has been discredited. I would be willing to come to a compromise and meet in the middle. For example, instead of a vaccine exemption based on personal beliefs, perhaps there could be an alternative schedule for vaccine delivery for parents who feel uncomfortable with their child receiving so many vaccines at once. I do not think that non immunocompromised children should be permitted to remain unvaccinated and attend a school setting with immunocompromised children. In cases of illnesses with high mortality rates, I believe vaccination should be mandatory barring a legitimate medical exemption. For example, illnesses with death rates of over 1%, such as Smallpox, Polio, Diphtheria, and measles, all of which have high death rates (ranging from 3%-30%), should have mandated vaccines.
Overall, I would argue that the only reason individuals should be able to receive an exemption is due to a medical inability, such as cancer, autoimmune disorders, or AIDS. Other than that, I do not think that you should be able to put thousands of people at risk because you believe in conspiracy theories regarding vaccines. Again, I would support an alternative schedule of vaccination, but not a complete elimination. As was noted in the documentary, since vaccines became common practice, life expectancies were extended by 30+ years. It seems clear to me: the good significantly outweighs the bad. Additionally, so many studies have been conducted trying to find links between vaccines and the accused side effects, and virtually none have supported the claims of the anti-vaxxers. As was stated in the documentary, many individuals opposed to mandatory vaccinations continuously move the finish line in regards to what is safe and what is not.
References
Miller, M. (1970, January 01). Vaccine-Preventable Diseases. Retrieved November 19, 2020, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2284/
The Vaccine War. (n.d.). Retrieved November 19, 2020, from https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/vaccines/
Double Sided 