By Kenny Sokan, editorial columnist
In recent weeks, the United States has seen a resurgence of measles, a highly contagious disease. An outbreak occurred at the end of December at Disneyland, a prime breeding ground of unwashed hands and touchy kids. Since then, more than 100 cases have been reported in the US this year, spotlighting the debate on vaccinations.
Yes, I said debate, although it really shouldn’t be. But, just for the sake of hearing out the people of the anti-vaccination movement (anti-vaxxers), let’s take a gander at their latest argument for defense.
Zero and 108. These are two numbers becoming increasingly pervasive in the anti-vaccination movement. For one: zero. The number deaths caused by measles in the last decade in the US. Secondly, 108, the number of people who have died from the measles vaccination in the last decade in the US. You can find these numbers with a quick Google search.
If anti-vaxxers are trying to play a numbers game, then they need a new strategy, because the numbers are not on their side.
The first statistic of zero is accurate, the second of 108 is debatable. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officially reports 69 since 2004. Putting this aside, the number of deaths caused by measles would be drastically higher without the inoculation. It’s hard to say whether or not those 69 people died as a direct result of receiving the vaccination. This goes for any other deaths following mandated immunizations.
According to the CDC, measles is one of the leading causes of death among young children worldwide. The vaccine became available in 1963. In the decade prior, virtually all children contracted measles by age 15. Every year, about three to four million people were infected in the nation.
In 2000, due to an “absence of continuous disease transmission for greater than 12 months,” measles was declared eliminated in the US, according to the CDC.
According to the World Health Organization, there has been a 75 percent decrease in measles related deaths between 2000 and 2013 worldwide. During this same time span, measles vaccinations prevented approximately 15.6 million deaths, making it “one of the best buys in public health.”
Sorry, anti-vaxxers, but the numbers upon which many of you are mounting your defense only seem to aid your opponents.
Much of the anti-vaccination movement can be linked to a 1998 report published in British medical journal “The Lancet,” which suggested that vaccinations could cause autism. The journal retracted the report in 2010 and it has since been discredited, but this hasn’t stopped anti-vaxxers from using it to support their cause. Furthermore, many celebrities are choosing not to immunize kids and, with the law on their side, they’re getting away with it.
Although vaccinations are required by law in every state, in many there are exemptions for medical, religious and philosophical reasons. To be exact, 48 states allow for religious reasons and 20 offer exemptions for those who object due to personal, moral or other beliefs.
Health and religion I get, but philosophical? I’m sure that is the one most celebrities are using.
This is an obvious issue of public health that has somehow warped into a conversation on individual choice. Vaccinations aren’t poison: they save lives and there’s data to prove it. Just do the research.
Photo courtesy NAID, Creative Commons
