How responsible are these non-vaccinating parents for my pertussis? Very. A study recently published in the journal Pediatrics indicated that outbreaks of these antediluvian diseases clustered where parents filed non-medical exemptions—that is, where parents decided not to vaccinate their kids because of their personal beliefs. The study found that areas with high concentrations of conscientious objectors were 2.5 times more likely to have an outbreak of pertussis. (To clarify: I was vaccinated against pertussis as a child, but the vaccine wears off by adulthood, which, until recently, was rarely a problem because the disease wasn't running rampant because of people not vaccinating their kids.)

Ugh. I'm not a fan of pharmaceutical corporations in the slightest, but parents who don't vaccinate their kids are incredibly irresponsible. I think if parents choose not to vaccinate against things that have been proven to respond to vaccinations should be penalized. I don't know exactly how though; isolating children could be detrimental developmentally and grouping unvaccinated kids could be the recipe for disaster, but there must be some option that protects the public from diseases their choices could be fostering.

posted 3810 days ago