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Anti-Vaxxers Defeated: NY Bans Exemptions as Doctors Vote to Step up Fight:
Anti-vaccine advocates received a blow in New York Thursday as state lawmakers banned non-medical exemptions based on religious beliefs—and there may be more blows coming.
Also on Thursday, the American Medical Association adopted a new policy to step up its fight against such non-medical exemptions. The AMA, the country's largest physicians' group and one of the largest spenders on lobbying, has always strongly support pediatric vaccination and opposed non-medical exemptions. But under the new policy changes, the association will now "actively advocate" for states to eliminate any laws that allow for non-medical exemptions.
"As evident from the measles outbreaks currently impacting communities in several states, when individuals are not immunized as a matter of personal preference or misinformation, they put themselves and others at risk of disease," AMA Board Member E. Scott Ferguson, M.D. said in a statement. "The AMA strongly supports efforts to eliminate non-medical exemptions from immunization, and we will continue to actively urge policymakers to do so."
The religious exemption ban in New York comes at a critical time. The state is at the forefront of a nationwide resurgence of measles, with active outbreaks that have sickened hundreds and splintered into other states.
"This administration has taken aggressive action to contain the measles outbreak, but given its scale, additional steps are needed to end this public health crisis," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a statement after signing the ban on religious exemptions. "While I understand and respect freedom of religion, our first job is to protect the public health, and by signing this measure into law, we will help prevent further transmissions and stop this outbreak right in its tracks."
Sudden outbreak of common sense?
(Score: -1, Redundant) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 17 2019, @03:22AM (7 children)
Could someone explain how vaccinne's only work if everyone gets them?
(Score: 4, Informative) by khallow on Monday June 17 2019, @03:54AM
Work better. Measles spreads in the first place because in a mostly uninfected, vulnerable population it can infect more than one person on average. That means at low incidents of measles in a unvaccinated population, it can spread exponentially. Near universal measles vaccination means that even with an imperfect vaccine, it infects less than one additional person on average, meaning that measles breakouts die out quickly.
And the key point here is that we gain this sufficient immunity to measles without having to catch measles (forgoing the week or more of being sick and the many bigger risks of measles than of its vaccines).
(Score: 5, Informative) by FatPhil on Monday June 17 2019, @07:41AM
If 19 of those are immune, then only one new person gets the disease.
If more than 19 are immune, each infected person infects less than one other person, and the disease dies out.
If fewer than 19 are immune, each infected person infects more than one other person, and the disease grows.
You may conclude that the level of vaccination neccessary to provide herd immunity is closely related to how infectious the disease is (and how long it can go undetected). The '20' and '95%' in the above example would be for highly infectious diseases.
The above is obviously a simplification, the actual differential equations in the model are a little bit more complicated, as there are different reasons why one might be immune, not just through vaccination. (Natural immunity, or already had the disease, for example.)
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 4, Informative) by fennec on Monday June 17 2019, @08:29AM (4 children)
You're getting vaccinated to protect the ones that can't, too young, have a pathology or the vaccine didn't work.
(Score: 2) by Alfred on Monday June 17 2019, @02:48PM (3 children)
That said, any parent who has any reason or no reason at all is entitle to the liberty to not vaccinate those that they are responsible for. To remove this liberty because you think they are not smart enough is a step closer to state mandated sterilization, because they are not smart enough to have kids. Who is officially the smartest and gets to make the decision is whoever is in office at the time. So, is there any Politician that you think is actually smart about anything remotely scientific, or is interested in truth over special interest money, or actually cares about you?
Vaccines are good but Liberty is more important.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by fennec on Tuesday June 18 2019, @07:35AM (2 children)
Life is not black and white, smart or dumb... Some peoples don't care to "understand herd immunity" and will just listen to the wrong person. The same way it was decided that you can't speed at 100 in a town with your car for the security of others, health organizations decide to have everyone vaccinated. Your liberty stops at the beginning of others. In that case, the others are the ones that can't get vaccinated.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 18 2019, @06:20PM (1 child)
no, you stupid, lying fuck. i'm not responsible for nature or the fucking weather, you dumb ass bastard. Nor your immune compromised children/grandmother. if you have a vulnerable relative keep their ass in the house or stay out of cramped public spaces. unless i purposely infect you, it's not my fault.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 18 2019, @06:28PM
Don't hold back, friend. Tell us how you really feel.