Should Vaccination be Mandatory

[Sebastian]

Lots of stuff in the news lately about the implications of the anti-vaccination movement with the return of what had been all but extinct diseases in the US.

Now, it seems many in the anti-vaccination movement are reacting to the measles outbreak by doubling down rather than getting their kids the MMR:

http://national.suntimes.com/national-world-news/7/72/617353/measles-parties

The question posed is whether the resurgence of preventable, and lethal, diseases is enough of a threat to public safety to warrant direct government intervention (with exemptions for valid medical reasons) in the form of legislation to make vaccinations mandatory for everyone at either the state or federal level.

 

[OptimusPrime]

I like Dr. Paul's take on it.

If I were still a practicing ob-gyn and one of my patients said she was not going to vaccinate her child, I might try to persuade her to change her mind. But, if I were unsuccessful, I would respect her decision. I certainly would not lobby the government to pass a law mandating that children be vaccinated even if the children’s parents object. Sadly, the recent panic over the outbreak of measles has led many Americans, including some self-styled libertarians, to call for giving government new powers to force all children to be vaccinated.

Those who are willing to make an “exception” to the principle that parents should make health care decisions for their children should ask themselves when in history has a “limited” infringement on individual liberty stayed limited. By ceding the principle that individuals have the right to make their own health care decisions, supporters of mandatory vaccines are opening the door for future infringements on health freedom.

If government can mandate that children receive vaccines, then why shouldn’t the government mandate that adults receive certain types of vaccines? And if it is the law that individuals must be vaccinated, then why shouldn’t police officers be empowered to physically force resisters to receive a vaccine? If the fear of infections from the unvaccinated justifies mandatory vaccine laws, then why shouldn’t police offices fine or arrest people who don’t wash their hands or cover their noses or mouths when they cough or sneeze in public? Why not force people to eat right and take vitamins in order to lower their risk of contracting an infectious disease? These proposals may seem outlandish, but they are no different in principle from the proposal that government force children to be vaccinated.

By giving vaccine companies a captive market, mandates encourage these companies to use their political influence to expand the amount of vaccine mandates. An example of how vaccine mandates may have led politics to override sound science is from my home state of Texas. In 2007, the then-Texas governor signed an executive order forcing eleven and twelve year old girls to receive the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine, even though most young girls are not at risk of HPV. The Texas legislature passed legislation undoing the order following a massive public outcry, fueled by revelations that the governor’s former chief of staff was a top lobbyist for the company that manufactured the HPV vaccine.

The same principles that protect the right to refuse vaccines also protect the right of individuals to refuse to associate with the unvaccinated. Private property owners have the right to forbid those who reject vaccines from entering their property. This right extends to private businesses concerned that unvaccinated individuals could pose a risk to their employees and customers. Consistent application of the principles of private property, freedom of association, and individual responsibility is the best way to address concerns that those who refuse vaccines could infect others with disease.

http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/arc...versy-shows-why-we-need-markets-not-mandates/

 

[JSS2306]

I like Dr. Paul's take on it.

If I were still a practicing ob-gyn and one of my patients said she was not going to vaccinate her child, I might try to persuade her to change her mind. But, if I were unsuccessful, I would respect her decision. I certainly would not lobby the government to pass a law mandating that children be vaccinated even if the children’s parents object. Sadly, the recent panic over the outbreak of measles has led many Americans, including some self-styled libertarians, to call for giving government new powers to force all children to be vaccinated.

As long as their are public schools where kids come into contact with each other there needs to be mandatory vaccinations for serious infectious viral diseases. If parents want to risk their kids lives that's their problem but risking other kids lives their kids come into contact with is not their right.

 

[Randolphkeys]

A good friend for over a decade decided not to vaccinate right when this trend was starting. Her daughter was about ten months younger than my son. Because of her choices, the family doesn't go out in the city much, they are like hermits hiding from other kids. When her kid wants to go into schools, the vaccinations become mandatory anyway. So, she is risking her toddler's life and separating from her friends for no reason.

 

[The Oi]

I just realized that I look at the anti-vaccine idiots the exact same way @Randolphkeys looks at Libertarians.

 

[Lee]

It should not be mandatory to vaccinate, that is a choice.

But, it should be mandatory to vaccinate to send your kid to public schools unless a medical condition prevents it. Your rights end when it threatens my kids and public health. It only takes about 5-10% of kids not vaccinated to cause a significant out break. Not all kids can be vaccinated because of medical conditions, there fore choosing to not vaccinate because of ignorance or misconception and then sending your kid to school threatens the kids with medical conditions and public health.

In a nutshell, vaccinate your kids. Jenny McCarthy is not enough of a reason to avoid vaccinating your kids.

 

[Randolphkeys]

Jenny McCarthy's kids nursed on 10% milk, 90% silicon.

 

[Jack Brickman]

Yes, it should be mandatory. Dumb asses who refuse to vaccinate their kids are the reason we keep seeing diseases we thought were eradicated popping back up. I would never not vaccinate my fucking dogs (by the way, some dog vaccinations are mandatory because, you know, it's common sense), so people with kids have no excuse aside from ignorance or science denial.

And seriously...fuck Rand Paul. Any doctor who says he respects peoples' decision to not vaccinate their kids is a shitty doctor and should lose his license. It's assholes like him who are the reason measles are coming back.

 

[OptimusPrime]

Yes, it should be mandatory. Dumb asses who refuse to vaccinate their kids are the reason we keep seeing diseases we thought were eradicated popping back up. I would never not vaccinate my fucking dogs, so people with kids have no excuse aside from ignorance or science denial.

And seriously...fuck Rand Paul. Any doctor who says he respects peoples' decision to not vaccinate their kids is a shitty doctor and should lose his license. It's assholes like him who are the reason measles are coming back.

Ron Paul wrote that article. Not Rand Paul.

And making vaccines mandatory will definitely stamp out the remaining few anti-vaxxers. I know making drugs illegal put an end to all of that drug use. I just want to know why the government would bother with vaccines when they could just make disease illegal.

 

[The Oi]

Yes, it should be mandatory. Dumb asses who refuse to vaccinate their kids are the reason we keep seeing diseases we thought were eradicated popping back up. I would never not vaccinate my fucking dogs (by the way, some dog vaccinations are mandatory because, you know, it's common sense), so people with kids have no excuse aside from ignorance or science denial.

And seriously...fuck Rand Paul. Any doctor who says he respects peoples' decision to not vaccinate their kids is a shitty doctor and should lose his license. It's assholes like him who are the reason measles are coming back.

I think you totally misinterpreted his take or the reach of his authority.

 

[Jack Brickman]

Ron Paul wrote that article. Not Rand Paul.

I'm pretty sure Rand shares the same views on vaccinations, so whatever. They're both fucking idiots.

 

[Jack Brickman]

 

[OptimusPrime]

Is this what government schools teach these days? One question is asked, so people vehemently argue the answer to a completely different question. No one here is saying you shouldn't vaccinate your kids.

 

[Jack Brickman]

Is this what government schools teach these days? One question is asked, so people vehemently argue the answer to a completely different question. No one here is saying you shouldn't vaccinate your kids.

Well, if no one here is saying that, then why not just make it mandatory? If the consensus is that kids should be vaccinated, then I don't see the problem. I have to get my dogs vaccinated for rabies every year because, you know, it's both a public health issue and common sense. Standard vaccinations for children should be no different. It's a common sense preventative for outbreaks of diseases we should have eradicated decades ago.

The fact that we're seeing diseases like the measles pop back up is proof that vaccines should be mandatory. I know there are some people here that are terrified of government overreach, but come on...this is one example of where government overreach would be a fucking great thing, because there are too many stupid people out there not vaccinating their children.

 

[OptimusPrime]

Well, if no one here is saying that, then why not just make it mandatory?

You don't have the authority, the consensus doesn't have the authority, and Obama doesn't have the authority.

Making it mandatory doesn't mean 100% of people will have them, so you are just surrendering your rights for nothing.

And while I have no problem with vaccines, diseases like measles were almost wiped out before the vaccine even hit the market. People aren't dropping dead because the government didn't force them to get vaccinated.