By Misha Lawrence

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Following the recent outbreak of measles at Disneyland and many other diseases in America and the rest of the world, there has been a constant debate about whether parents should be required to have their children vaccinated at an early age. Having any person vaccinated for the reason of staying healthy and keeping others around you healthy should be considered common decency. The human race has fought to stay alive and well since the dawn of mankind, only to see now that our lives are being put at risk by the decision of some who refuse to maintain the quality of life we are offered through vaccinations.

Many parents are against getting their children vaccinated because of previous family records, fear of serious side effects or complications and other personal reasons. The myth about autism being a side effect of the measles or rubella vaccines was debunked when there was no further evidence that connected the two together. After reviewing the concerns of researchers, advocacy groups and several other large groups around the nation, the Institute of Medicine found no evidence throughout the review that linked autoimmune diseases, asthma, hypersensitivity, seizure, learning or developmental disorders or attention deficit or disruptive disorders with child immunization. These unlikely side affects are a smaller problem, so if there’s already a resolution to the bigger problem we should make it a priority.

On Feb. 9, National Post released a story about a couple in Ottawa, Canada who recently opened up a daycare with a “vaccine-free environment” for parents who refuse to vaccinate their kids. This daycare should not put parents who want to protect their children at ease. This “daycare” is not improving the community, but instead continues to represent a risk to the current conditions of people living in Ottawa and everyone else around the world. If just one of those children were to come down with measles, it’s highly likely that all of the other children will contract the virus, which can then spread like wildfire.

All U.S. states require certain vaccines for students, for diseases such as mumps, rubella, tetanus and polio, but school immunization laws grant exemptions to children for medical reasons, including an inhibited immune system. Lawmakers all over the U.S., especially in California, Oregon and Washington, have been trying to make it harder for parents to legally opt out of vaccinating their children because of personal beliefs. This can lower the risk of America’s children being infected.

According to Melanie Amato, a State Department of Health spokeswoman, Ohio will soon have a law requiring children enrolled in a licensed childcare facility to be immunized against measles and other diseases. Although these steps forward will likely improve the well-being of the people of this country, it brings me to question where and if the government should come into place and control whether or not parents will have the choice to immunize their children against diseases or not.

Personally, I don’t believe that the government would be successful if they tried to require parents to vaccinate their children because it would cause uproar among parents about their rights concerning their own children. The government should not be able to control how a person raises and takes care of their child. It should be up to the parent to ensure the safety and health of their child. The main thing the government can do, however, is ensure that the public has consistent information about immunizing children and themselves.

Meth and tobacco prevention programs have stepped up their game with putting out commercials for public viewing by showing the reality of drug and smoking addictions. If the public can frequently learn about immunization and its benefits through a few seconds of screentime, I think people would be persuaded to get vaccinated, or at the least, be more knowledgeable about the subject matter.

To better protect our community and the health of our children, we should naturally make it an obligation to go out and get more information about getting vaccinated and encourage others to get vaccinations to avoid the spread of diseases and to look out for one another in order to advance ourselves in the battle against disease.