Measles vs Morals: Exemption from Vaccinations

"Where Could the Next Outbreak of Measles Be?”, published in the Wall Street Journal, was written on March 20, 2012 by Valerie Bauerlein and Betsy McKay, and can be found by visiting: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303863404577284001227981464.html

In this article, Bauerlein and McKay describe the worries of public-health officials, who fear that outbreaks of illnesses such as measles and diphtheria may be looming and ready to strike as deadly epidemics. Public health officials are particularly worried about regions in the Northwest, which are notorious for having low vaccination rates. In parts of Oregon, Washington state, Idaho and Montana, overall vaccination rates are under 80 percent, which makes the people living in these areas much more susceptible for contracting and spreading diseases. In order to ensure herd immunity, health experts claim that 95 percent of the population most be vaccinated.

Bauerlein and McKay state that the reason for such low vaccination rates is due to exceptions made on the base of philosophical and/or religious regions. Lorraine Duncan, immunization manager in the Oregon Health Authority’s Public Health Division, bluntly states “The Northwest is a black hole for religious exemptions [from vaccinations]” The rate of exceptions for vaccinations are rapidly growing. Last year, 5.6 percent of Oregon kindergartners alone were exempt from vaccinations due to religious reasons, which is up 2 percent from ten years ago.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is currently working with Oregon health officials in order to prevent an anticipated outbreak of diseases such as measles. Bauerlin and McKay write that “Measles is a highly contagious respiratory condition that can lead to encephalitis, pneumonia and death.” I found this quote to be particularly interesting because it relates to polio in that pneumonia can result from the disease.

Overall, more US parents are having their children vaccinated than in recent years. However, vaccination rates are much lower for new immunizations, such as the HPV vaccine targeted at teens. Moreover, in a 2010 survey conducted by the CDC, over 33 percent of parents of children aged 6 years or younger claimed they were concerned about the amount of vaccinations their children were receiving before they were 2 years old. This was mainly because of concerns regarding a link between vaccines and autism, despite the fact that it was refuted by scientific studies.

The dangers of not getting vaccinated were unveiled when two people were infected with the measles last month after attending the Super Bowl. The total outbreak of measles in this case only affected 16 people, but the total cases of measles in the US last year was 222.

Another frightening measles outbreak was in 2008 in San Diego and was traced to an unvaccinated 7-year-old boy who got the disease in Switzerland. The boy later spread measles to 11 other unvaccinated children in his family, school, and doctor’s office

In my opinion, I think vaccinations should be mandatory for children. Some exceptions should be allowed, however when too many exceptions are made, problems being to arise. While I understand and empathize with people who do not want to receive vaccinations due to religious or philosophical reasons, I think that the health of the general population is very important as well. I believe that it is unfair for a child to spread a disease when he/she had the ability to get a vaccination.

This article reminded me of the unit on smallpox where we discussed the inoculation debate. Many people were against inoculation because they were afraid of dying from complications of it. However, only about 2% of inoculated people died from such complications. I think this resonates with the article because some people believe that giving too many vaccines to young children can lead to autism. If enough people are vaccinated (around 95 percent of people within a certain area), herd immunity allows for about only 5 percent of people to be exempt from vaccinations, which is helpful if people do not want to be vaccinated for religious reasons.

Moreover, this article made me think back to the unit on typhoid fever, where we learned about the civil liberties that every American has a right to. The government technically cannot force a person to take medicine or get vaccinated, however, this sparks debate when other people become at risk as a result.

Picture: http://oregonimminews.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/rates-rerising1.png?w=437&h=261 Oregon Religious Exemption Rates