Vaccines save lives. The opt out policy saves children’s lives while not denying parental rights to make their own decisions.
You have failed to answer the point or question: Why isnt optout enough of a right of not following common-sense public health vaccination policies? You stop vaccinations, and healthcare costs and deaths from epidemics will go up - do you actually want that? Are you really wanting people to not get vaccinations? ‘opt in’ is a no-op. Are you going to be happy with letting more children die because we are afraid to tell parents to do the right thing? How many babies dying of whooping cough would change your mind?
Caifornia mandated vaccine due to kids dying of whooping cough. Lack of vaccinations helped spread the disease:
http://children.webmd.com/vaccines/vaccines-what-todays-parents-should-know/california-whooping-cough-epidemic?page=2
“Public health officials agree that unvaccinated children are just one factor that has played a role in the epidemic.”
http://blogs.webmd.com/all-ears/2011/08/vaccines-save-lives-period.html
“I am always respectful of parental concerns. I listen to their side of the argument, read their strange articles they find on the Internet, but then they have to listen to me. Personally, I feel that a parent probably has the right to decide which disease they would like their unvaccinated child to get, but as humans, sharing this small planet, we need to think of others. Just because you have not seen measles or polio, does not mean that millions of children around the world aren’t dying from them. Diseases are indiscriminate. Diseases do not care who they kill, deafen, or maim, but we should. The more people who are vaccinated, the less chance killer diseases will win this perpetual battle.”
Bill Gates - vaccines save lives:
http://www.impatientoptimists.org/Posts/2011/01/Vaccines-Save-Lives
http://www.ecbt.org/advocates/
“Routine childhood immunization impact:
* 33,000 deaths prevented
* $43 billion saved”
“The March of Dimes says vaccinations are safe and effective in protecting unborn babies, newborns, children, and adults against very serious, life-threatening infections such as polio, whooping cough, and rubella (German measles). Before the development of vaccines, thousands of babies and children died or were seriously disabled every year from these diseases. Because immunization programs of the 20th century were so successful, many of today’s young parents do not understand that the risk for these diseases to re-emerge is real, Dr. Katz said. “
Regarding the optout provision:
We rate Perry’s claim Barely True.
Editor’s note: This statement was rated Barely True when it was published. On July 27, 2011, we changed the name for the rating to Mostly False.