Essay On Mandatory Vaccination

For years, vaccines have been preventing life-threatening disease and illnesses around the world. Parents fear having their children immunized more than the disease itself, causing more parents to refuse to vaccinate their children (SP). Not vaccinating does not only affect the child, but also other children in school. For students, there are medical and nonmedical exemptions that can be obtained for school-required vaccinations. The amount of nonmedical exemptions has been increasing lately, which is putting many young children in danger of diseases. Recently, there was an outbreak of measles at Disneyland that infected more than 100 people in the United States and Mexico (“California Enacts Mandatory”). The recent measles outbreak was the worst case in decades, which called for a reform in the state of California. A bill was signed that requires students to be vaccinated against diseases, such as whooping cough and measles. Students who do not receive the necessary immunizations will be required to be home-schooled (“California Enacts Mandatory”). Some parents are arguing against the bill stating that parents have the right to decide whether their child gets vaccinated. Children who do not have all mandatory immunizations should be required to be homeschooled because they jeopardize the safety of the community by causing an outbreak. This will remove personal belief exemptions and only allow …show more content…
“Herd immunity” is dwindling as parents increasingly refuse to receive immunization, which is causing “outbreaks of diseases thought to have been conquered” (SP). A school should be a safe environment for all children; they believe that children who can potentially endanger others should be home-schooled to be safe. Medicine is advancing each year; the benefits of medicine currently outweigh the