In the middle of a measles outbreak,
some Americans are not vaccinating their kids.
Local governments want to punish them.
But is that against the law?
And is this problem going to get worse?
Welcome to America Uncovered.
I’m Chris Chappell
Measles.
It’s one of the the most highly contagious
diseases known to mankind.
After disco fever.
It literally can spread through the air.
Measles that is.
According to the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention,
the “measles virus can live for up to two
hours in an airspace
where the infected person coughed or sneezed.”
And people can infect others up to four days
before the measles rash even appears.
Basically, if measles were the zombie virus,
The Walking Dead would be a reality TV show.
Fortunately for all of us, the measles is
not the zombie apocalypse.
But measles does infect millions of people
each year—
and it kills thousands every year worldwide.
Its primary victims are children.
There is no cure for measles.
But, there is a vaccine.You know, if you really
think about it, humanity and science has come
pretty far.
It’s cool to think about the incredible
advancements we have made,
whether it’s in medical research,space travel,and
robotics.
Okay, I’ll admit,
this stuff can get just a little bit… creepy.
I’m scared, but I can’t look away…
Anyway … vaccines.
Measles is considered one of the leading causes
of vaccine-preventable deaths among children.
The measles vaccine wasn’t invented until
1963.
But in the decade before the vaccine was available,
almost every child got measles at least once
by the time they were 15.
And during that time, out of the 3 to 4 million
Americans who were infected each year,
up to 500 people died, and tens of thousands
more were hospitalized.
But with the widespread use of the vaccine,
by the year 2000,
officials declared that measles had been eliminated
in the United States.
Except, now the measles are making a world
comeback tour that nobody wants to see.
It’s like New Kids on the Block.
We thought we got rid of them,
but somehow they’re still Hangin’ Tough.
Right now,
the United States is seeing the highest number
of measles cases in 25 years.
The latest numbers show just over 700 reported
cases of measles in 22 states,
according to the CDC.
They say this is the greatest number of cases
since it was declared eliminated.
By the way, “declared eliminated” doesn’t
mean measles cases went to zero.
Technically it just meant the spread of the
disease had stopped.
So, why has the spread of measles... unstopped?
Well, it depends on who you ask.
The CDC blames Americans who choose not to
vaccinate their children.
But there’s also been a general surge in
measles across the globe.
The World Health Organization says that at
least 112,000 cases of measles
were reported worldwide, just in the first
three months of 2019 alone.
That’s a 300% increase from the same time
frame last year.
Some outbreaks are happening in countries
where there’s not a robust healthcare system.
Other areas are seeing a resurgence in measles
because their healthcare systems have been
breaking down due to instability,
like in Ukraine, and Syria, and Venezuela.
And then that affects nearby areas as well.
And there are also areas where people don’t
trust
the healthcare system or vaccines,
and aren’t vaccinating their kids.
That happened in the Philippines after the
government botched a vaccine rollout.
When Americans travel to areas with measles
and bring the infection back,
that spikes the number of cases here, too.
But now US state and local governments are
trying to figure out
what to do to contain the measles outbreak.
And their latest bright idea is to force you
to vaccinate your kids.
Kind of.
You see, every state already requires kids
to be vaccinated
in order to attend school.
So, that’s nothing new.
And the fact that some people are
generally opposed to vaccinations is nothing
new, either.
But, there’s a loophole.
You can be exempt from vaccinating your child
for medical reasons—like
an immune system issue or life-threatening
allergies.
In 47 states, you can opt out for religious
reasons,
and in 17 of them, for more more general philosophical
reasons.
Here’s what Wyoming’s religious exemption
form looks like.
By signing it, a parent declares a “genuine
religious objection”
to up to eight different vaccines — including
one for measles —
that are required for a child to attend school
in that state.
This form also indicates that a child won’t
be allowed to attend school
or care facilities during an outbreak.
And, that the parent understands this exemption
puts their child,
and other children, at risk of infection,
and even death.
That’s a lot to consider.
Most parents, of course, choose to vaccinate
their kids.
Among children born in 2015—so,
pre-schoolers—the CDC says the vaccination
rate is close to 99%.
But there are a lot of kids in this country.
So even that remaining 1% means
hundreds of thousands of kids go unvaccinated.
And now the current outbreak is putting a
lot of pressure on lawmakers
to do something about it.
As a result, it became really easy to point
the finger at people
who are against vaccinations.
These people are labeled “anti-vaxxers.”
And this really upsets me.
How dare people spell “vaxxers” with two
exes!?
There is no “ex” in “vaccine”!
Now a lot of folks involved in the anti-vaxxer
movement
cite a medical study from 1998
that linked vaccines to autism as a reason
for not vaccinating their kids.
The thing is, that study, which was published
in the Lancet medical journal,
was retracted in 2010 for being, as they put
it, “incorrect”.
But there are still other reasons why some
people object to vaccinations.
Even the CDC acknowledges the MMR vaccine—which
is for measles,
mumps, and rubella—is only about 97% effective.
If vaccines were 100% effective and totally
safe,
then why would we have something called the
National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program?
In very rare cases, vaccines can cause severe
health problems.
The compensation program allows those who
were injured to seek a settlement.These adverse
reactions are rare, so the risk is still relatively
small.
Mainstream medicine opposes the notion that
the vaccine is riskier than the disease itself.
But to some parents,
the risk is enough for them to reconsider
whether or not to vaccinate their children.
Especially since it’s been a while since
diseases like the measles have been widespread.
Now, some people say, why should you care
if someone chooses not to vaccinate their
kids,
if your kids are vaccinated.
The problem is, again,
the measles vaccine is only 97% effective.
Even if you are vaccinated,
there’s still a small chance you can catch
it.
And then there are the people who can’t
get the vaccine
because of allergies or other medical conditions.
So the more people who get the vaccine,
the more these vulnerable groups are protected.
But, is it a good idea to punish people for
questioning mainstream medical science?
A hundred years ago, doctors would give patients
mercury
to treat syphilis and other diseases.
Some people questioned it, and it turned out
later, oops!
Mercury causes brain damage.
Now obviously, modern medicine is much better
than that,
and vaccines have saved millions of lives.
But should we as a society shut down people
who have a different view
and force them to take medicine they don’t
want?
The 99% of parents who get their kids vaccinated,
and those who intentionally don’t—
they all still have the goal of keeping their
kids safe.
But with the new spread of measles,
a number of states across the country are
trying to make it harder
for exemptions to be approved.
Others are just outright punishing people
for not vaccinating their children.
Take New York, for example.
A public health emergency was declared in
New York City that requires
people to get the vaccine—for themselves
and their children.
Otherwise, they could face violations and
even fines of $1,000.
And just last week, the city started issuing
those fines,
and even closed schools down for not keeping
unvaccinated children out.
Sure, this pushback against “anti-vaxxers”
is mainly at the state and local level.
But that alone is enough to light up concerns
about freedoms being infringed upon.
What would happen if that kind of pushback
comes from the federal government?
Is a public health threat enough to justify
forcing people to do
what the government thinks is the “right”
thing to do?
The Association of American Physicians and
Surgeons—
a conservative group representing thousands
of physicians—
is concerned about that possibility.
In a letter to a Senate committee,
they say that they believe personal liberty
is an unalienable right.
They strongly oppose the federal government
mandating vaccinations.
Executive director of AAPS Jane Orient writes
that the risk to benefit ratio of vaccines
varies,
but that these individual factors should be
evaluated by patient and physician—
not imposed by a government agency.
To be clear, currently,
there are no federal laws that require immunization
of any kind.
But in 1905, the Supreme Court heard a case
of mandatory vaccinations.
In Jacobson v. Massachusetts,
the court questioned whether a mandatory vaccination
law
violated the Fourteenth Amendment.
Come on, you all remember that one, right?
No?
Am I the only one who has a U.S. Constitution
app on my phone?
The Fourteenth Amendment primarily
guarantees citizens’ equal protection under
the law.
This amendment was cited in landmark cases
on segregation and same-sex marriage.
Ultimately, the court held that it is within
the state’s power to protect the public
health
and safety of its citizens, and that the petitioner’s
rights were not violated.
Justice John Harlan was the associate justice
who delivered the opinion of the high court.
He wrote that “it was the duty of the constituted
authorities”
to care for the “welfare, comfort and safety
of the many” rather than
“permit the interests of the many” to
take a backseat to the “convenience of the
few.”
That mentality is echoed now by people who
support more strict
enforcement on vaccination requirements.
And it’s understandable.
It’s easy to grow concerned when you see
headlines like this every week.
Or this.
Maybe that was Thanos’ plan all along!
But measles being “eliminated” from the
U.S.
doesn’t take into account its existence
in the rest of the world.
And like I said, it can be brought into the
U.S.
by travelers who travel to and from countries
with large outbreaks.
The 2018 outbreaks in New York State,
New York City and New Jersey primarily occurred
among unvaccinated people in
Orthodox Jewish communities.
The CDC says these outbreaks were linked to
travelers
who carried measles back to the states after
traveling to Israel.
See, while only around 1% of Americans are
unvaccinated,
that rate is much higher in certain communities.
Like among Orthodox Jews in New York,
and among Amish people in Ohio.
Although at least among the Amish,
the disease spreads at 3 miles per hour, tops.
The reasons that these communities are undervaccinated
is complex.
With the Amish, parents aren’t always linked
in to the mainstream hospital
or educational systems that are pushing for
vaccines.
The sudden drop-off in vaccinations among
Orthodox Jews in New York
has been linked to this pamphlet, the Vaccine
Safety Handbook,
which is from an organization called PEACH.
The handbook has a lot of misinformation on
vaccines,
including linking them to the Nuremberg
Trials and claiming that governments are trying
to use them for depopulation.
And guess what community might be sensitive
to fears
that the government could be coming after
them?
Orthodox Jewish nurses and others are trying
to combat those fears.
But right now, the measles outbreak is still
a cause for concern,
and the numbers continue to grow.
That’s why the director of the CDC posted
a Tweet
encouraging people to follow the agency’s
vaccination guidelines.
Even President Trump has weighed in.
“They have to get the shot.
The vaccinations are so important.”
Oh good.
Now vaccines definitely won’t become a polarized,
political issue.
So, what do you think about the current measles
outbreak?
Leave your comments below.
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Once again, I’m Chris Chappell.
Thanks for watching America Uncovered.
