Twenty years ago a study was published that made parents question the safety of vaccines. It did not matter that vaccines do more to protect us than they do to harm. Parents see one thing that says there is something wrong and automatically write off vaccines. Vaccines have protected our country against deadly diseases and decreased childhood mortality. When we didn't have access to vaccines we saw a lot more childhood deaths from the illnesses that we have vaccines for now, like measles mumps, rubella, polio, influenza A and B, and many more. Even though we have access to these vaccines parents are choosing to opt out. This is not only dangerous to that specific child but to the entire community. Parents should be mandated to vaccinate their children in order to protect the children and the community.   

One of the biggest controversies in vaccine history is the link between autism and vaccines. In 1998, Dr. Andrew Wakefield published an un-reviewed study, which linked autism and vaccines, in a British medical journal. CNN's Retracted autism study shows that in Wakefields' study he concluded that when children are given three specific vaccines together they could alter immune systems which would cause intestinal problems and then damage the brain (Cohen par #12). Upon review it was found that Wakefield falsified and changed his results, tainting the study, and calling into question its validity (Cohen par #3). When medical professionals reviewed his work they found no evidence to back up his study and said his sample size was statistically too small to represent the entire population (Cohen par #11). The medical journals called his work fraudulent and even stripped him of his medical license (Cohen par #11). A study was conducted by the Center for Disease Control, which contained bigger samples sizes and tried to repeat the results that Wakefield produced (Vaccines par #12). They concluded the same as the medical professionals that there is no link between autism and vaccines, the Center for Disease Control also made a point in saying that just because a kid was administered a shot and happened to also develop autism does not automatically mean the two are related (Vaccines par #14). Although his study was retracted and he was stripped of his medical license, the damage was already done. With this link to autism, even though it was false, parents began to question whether these vaccinations should be given to their children and when they should receive them. 

The media outbreak was crucial to these opinions that parents were forming. Celebrities that have children with autism and others went to the media to speak out against vaccines. Parents had something new to blame autism on and it came in the form of shots that were helping children fight diseases. This fraudulent study is still prevalent in the decision whether or not to vaccinate your children and is referred to by many parents. 

Parents who choose not to vaccinate their children argue that their child's immune system is strong enough as it is and that there is no need to vaccinate (Middleton par #12). In an article  published in PLOS Biology a group of parents have decided to vaccinate but not on the given schedule or will pick and choose which vaccinations to give their children (Daley par #6). These children are also at risk; even though they are partially vaccinated, they are not covered fully and therefore susceptible to the diseases they are not vaccinated for (Daley par #6). Lynn Barton was interviewed for CNN and asserted that she doesn't believe in certain vaccines and doesn't think they are helpful (Barton). She emphasizes that the main vaccine she doesn't believe in is the MMR vaccine (Barton). Measles mumps and rubella (MMR) is one of the most common vaccines that is skipped or opted out of (Caroll par #6). This is actually a popular opinion amongst the population that chooses not to vaccinate their children. This opinion was made popular by the link to autism. The MMR vaccine was one of the ones Wakefield identified in his study and is still widely unvaccinated. They think the number of vaccines we are being given at a young age is way too many. One of the states with the highest rates of kids who aren't immunized is Oregon (Barton). Of the kindergarten population 26.4 percent are not vaccinated (Barton). The Center for Disease Control actually travelled to Ashland, Oregon, one of the cities known for having the lowest vaccination rate, to inquire why these parents were opting their children out of vaccinations. The responses they received were astounding. 

Parents showed little to no regard for the other children in the community especially those who cannot be vaccinated. They had a one tracked mind; everything was all about their children, and they paid no attention to the effect their decisions were having on the community. Jennifer Marguilis claimed she wasn't putting anyone else in danger by not vaccinating her children. She asserts that her children have "robust immune systems" and therefore are not causing anyone else any harm (Barton). When asked how the community was to take her word for it or anyone else's who doesn't vaccinate she became defensive and said "maybe you should give me a test asking did you breast feed your children and for how long, and how often do your kids get sick, and how often do you take them to the doctor" (Barton). This was her justification for her supposedly "extremely healthy kids" that basically we should just take her word for it (Barton). I for one would not take her word for it, so yes maybe her children are healthy, but she is using old factors and even irrelevant factors to argue that point. She claims that she is informed and has done over 20 years of research about the subject yet she still thinks only breast feeding her children will keep them safe from outbreaks of these diseases. Many parents have the same opinions as Barton and Marguilis no matter how mislead their research is they still believe they are right and have no regard for the community. The community and individual children play a role that coincide producing a concept called herd immunity. 

Herd Immunity is the percentage of children in the community who need to be vaccinated for a certain disease in order to successfully protect those who are unvaccinated. This percentage is used to evaluate how protected a certain community is from specific diseases like Measles Mumps and Rubella (MMR) and influenza A and B. Parents who choose not to vaccinate have done so for many reasons but the most common reason seems to be the belief that the "herd" will protect their children (Willingham par #3). The thing these parents don't realize is that since the number of parents depending on the herd is increasing, herd immunity is actually decreasing and leaving the community vulnerable and unprotected. In order to be protected, the community has to be above a certain percentage. For the MMR vaccine to be effective and for the community to be protected the percentage of vaccinated children has to be at least 92-95 percent. In order to keep track of these numbers, parents are required to report their child's vaccination status to the child's school. Most public schools throughout the United States require the children who attend the school to be thoroughly vaccinated.  

  This image depicts herd immunity and shows how the community would be affected if a disease were to break out in the community. This first scenario is what our community looked like before vaccines. This scenario depicts what would happen in the community if no one was immunized and a disease was introduced. If this was our community it would have detrimental effects and almost everyone would contract the disease. One example would be what happened in Europe when the Bubonic plague killed one third of the population.  The second scenario shows that if only a few in the community are vaccinated and the disease is introduced that most people would catch the disease but there are more who were immune than the first scenario. The example for this would be when Edward Jenner first found that Cowpox created immunity to Smallpox and thus the first vaccine was born. The third scenario depicts what our community should look like when those who are unable to get vaccinated are protected by the "herd" which has been vaccinated. Scenario three shows that most people were immune to the outbreak, but there were a few of the unvaccinated population who caught the disease. Our community used to look like scenario 3, but as more and more parents choose not to vaccinate their children we are moving back toward scenario two. Certain diseases that should have been eradicated are showing up in these communities with low herd immunity, and because these diseases are extremely contagious they spread like wild fire from community to community until they can be contained. There are certain children who cannot be vaccinated due to medical reasons, or they are just too young. In these cases, it is not a choice the parents are given, and they rely on the herd to keep their child safe. Parents who are choosing not to vaccinate are putting their children at risk and there is nothing those kids can do about it. Herd immunity has continued to drop all around the country. In order to get back to where our "herd" can protect us again, parents need to be more informed, or else kids will continue to get sick.   

One instance where herd immunity was compromised was the measles outbreak of 2014 at Disneyland in Southern California (Lin par #3). The outbreak in California was due to the alarmingly low rate of childhood vaccinations (Lin par #2). Some California schools reported that they were at 50 percent or lower herd immunity (Lin par #5). A study published by JAMA pediatrics reports the measles outbreak spread to communities with vaccination percentages between 50 to 80 percent (Lin par #7). Even with these alarming rates parents are still choosing not to vaccinate their children. It was approximated that about 7 in 10 measles patients were unvaccinated (Lin par #5). This is an obscenely high number for a disease that was almost eradicated completely in the United States. The measles can also be a deadly disease and the CDC expects that 1 in every 1000 children that contracts this disease will die from it (par #3). 

Many states have been trying to push through legislation to require vaccinations for children, but the legislation has not been received well. Parents who think they should have a choice have slandered government officials that have lobbied for these bills. Parents want to have a choice, but I think we are giving them too much of a choice and they are choosing wrong. Legislators in California are trying to make it mandatory for children to get vaccinated before enrolling in public school systems. If this bill passes it will be a win for not only all the parents whose children are either too sick or too young to get vaccinated, but also the community as a whole. Another bill proposed that every year a parent decides not to vaccinate should require those parents to watch a 20-minute video describing the danger they are putting their child in and how their choices are affecting the community. With the informational video that the bill proposes, parents could learn a lot and could be kept up to date on current research that they wouldn't be subjected to automatically on Google. If this bill passes it could play a big role in increasing awareness in how the decision not to vaccinate is such a detrimental one. The bill also suggested doctors and nurses need to be more adamant about the importance of these vaccines. One study reveals that doctors are not doing enough to stress the importance and describe the consequences of the actions parents are taking when choosing not to vaccinate. With the decrease in herd immunity and the couple instances where measles has broke out in our country we are starting to wake up and realize this problem is not going away; its only getting worse. We are stuck in a in a holding pattern watching herd immunity decline and bracing our selves for the next epidemic. These parents who are not vaccinating are taking an unnecessary risk with their child's life and the lives of children in their community. Many parents aren't afforded the choice to vaccinate their children. They have to rely on the herd and place the responsibility of their child's health in the communities hands.

In Salt Lake City, Utah, Noah Chesler, a 9-year-old bone marrow transplant recipient was super excited for his first day back to school after two years (Chen par #1). When that day arrived Noah was not allowed to return to school because one of his unvaccinated classmates had contracted the measles virus (Chen par #2). The unvaccinated child had traveled outside of the country with their family and contracted the measles virus, then returned to school and infected three classmates and four others. Children like Noah have immune systems that are too medically compromised to fight off viruses like Measles. Noah's mom says "immunizing your children is more than a personal choice  --  it's a social obligation" (Chen par #4). These parents do not understand that they are lucky to even have the choice to vaccinate, but because they are choosing not to they are putting those children who cannot get immunized at a high risk. In rural parts of the United States, herd immunity has dropped significantly. In some sections of Utah it drops below 70 percent, and even the wealthiest sections of the state are below the herd mark of 92 percent at 88 percent (Chen par #11&13). This is a discouraging trend; these vaccines are protecting us from deadly diseases and the herd is supposed to be protecting children like Noah who are unable to be immunized, but because the percentage is so low we are at risk for an epidemic. 

Parents who have chosen not to vaccinate are not only putting their children at a disadvantage, but also creating more problems for themselves. The Center for Disease Control put out a set of guidelines for parents with unvaccinated children, which outlines the precautions these parents should take, if a vaccine preventable disease breaks out in the community. In the pamphlet, parents are instructed to take their children out of school and extracurricular activities for days to sometimes weeks ("If You Choose ... " par #2). This puts those children at a disadvantage, they could fall behind in school and miss important curriculum ("If You Choose ... "  par #3). At that point it is almost better to home school unvaccinated children.

The Center for Disease Control pamphlet goes on to argue "with the decision to delay or reject vaccines comes an important responsibility that could save your child's life, or the life of someone else" ("If You Choose ... "  par #1). The most important part of this statement is the word responsibility and that's the point the parents who are choosing not to vaccinate are missing. With this choice comes the responsibility to not only your child, but also all the children in the community. During the CNN interview, Jennifer Marguilis was asked what she thought about having her children around unvaccinated children who could not get vaccinated for medical reasons, and if she was putting them in danger. She asserts that she rejects the assumption that she should get her child vaccinated as a moral obligation to better the community (Barton).  This statement is the one the doctors are starting to fear the most because the more parents that adopt this selfish point of view the less protected our community as a whole becomes. Another important factor for parents to remember is that hospitals and doctors offices are cesspools for bacteria and viruses. Whenever an unvaccinated child is brought into a hospital the doctors have to be notified immediately so they can isolate the child to protect others from the vaccine preventable diseases.  

All children should be vaccinated. Not only are we putting our separate communities in danger, but also, we are putting the entire country at risk by choosing not to vaccinate. If this trend continues and herd immunity continues to drop, it is not a matter of if another outbreak will occur it is when will it occur. Another outbreak will happen, we are not sufficiently protected anymore and we will continue to not only lose members of our community but people we love. We are privileged to have access to these vaccines, but now we have made a choice to disregard everything that happened before they were created, and to ignore all these deadly diseases that we do not hear about because we have protected ourselves against them in the past. Legislation needs to be passed that will require parents to vaccinate their children for at least the most basic of the vaccines. We also need to find a way to educate these parents who don't believe in vaccines. We also need to be able to present those parents with the current research because when people search on the internet they only see what they want to see and if they have their mind set on the made up fact that vaccines are bad they will only find research on the bad parts of vaccines credible or not. If we cannot find a way to educate parents on the importance of vaccines, these diseases will rear their ugly heads again, and when they do there will be mass casualties. Unless we can turn our country around and get the un-vaccinating parents to realize these vaccines are for the best. Go get your vaccinations!

