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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: 5, Informative) by NotSanguine on Monday June 17 2019, @02:47AM (24 children)
That's an apples to oranges comparison.
There is a known to be safe and effective vaccine for Measles. There is no vaccine for Hep C [mayoclinic.org] and, for a variety of reasons [cdc.gov] (perhaps we need to reevaluate this too), the TB vaccine is not widely used in the US, and there is no HIV vaccine either.
Instead, why don't we compare measles cases to smallpox and rubella.
Smallpox cases in the US [cdc.gov]: 0 since 1952. Cause: widespread vaccination
Rubella cases in the US [cdc.gov]: 0 since 2004. Cause: widespread vaccination.
Measles cases in the US [cdc.gov]: 1,022. Cause: dwindling herd immunity due to reduced vaccination levels.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: -1, Troll) by realDonaldTrump on Monday June 17 2019, @03:16AM (10 children)
HIV -- otherwise known as AIDS -- is a disaster. And it really did a number on New York. There's a pill for HIV. For not getting HIV. And, for not passing it on. And by the way, I talked to Gilead Sciences. Who make that one. And I made a magnificent deal. So 200,000 people can get that pill FOR FREE. ZERO DOLLARS!! foxbusiness.com/healthcare/trump-strikes-big-hiv-drug-deal-to-knockout-virus [foxbusiness.com]
What has Andrew Cuomo done for the health of the people of New York? I'll tell you what. He put the blue, and gold tiles in the Queens Midtown Tunnel. Instead of the plain white tiles they wanted to put in. Thank you, Andrew!!
(Score: -1, Troll) by realDonaldTrump on Monday June 17 2019, @03:24AM (3 children)
(cont) Those Colored tiles cost $20 million or even $30 million. Lot of money because White wasn't good enough for Andrew.
Hepatitis C, there's no vaccine, that's so true. But, there are pills that cure it. 95% of the time, they cure it. It's not a sure thing but it's pretty good, right? And those pills cost about $100,000. Can you work out how many times that goes into $30 million? I'll work it out for you, it's 300 times. 300 people. And 95% would be cured, that's 285 people. Andrew doesn't care about health. He's just another corrupt Dem politician!!!!
(Score: 2) by Mykl on Monday June 17 2019, @03:57AM (2 children)
You should focus on your funny parodies of DT. These sound too much like something he'd actually post, and doesn't contain any of the satire/humor I look for in your earlier posts.
In other words, I like your old stuff better than your new stuff.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 17 2019, @04:15PM
not to mention (cont) is not what the real con don uses, just dot dot dot dot dot dot dot dot
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 17 2019, @09:14PM
Make realDonaldTrump Great Again?
(Score: 2) by HiThere on Monday June 17 2019, @04:22AM (5 children)
That is one post where you have stepped over the boarder into outright lying.
There is no "pill" to avoid or suppress HIV, unless you're talking about cyanide, or something similar. HIV is a virus that is wildly variable, and medicines that work on one variety are useless against some other. And it mutates so rapidly that if you have it, you probably have thousands of varieties, so a drug cocktail is the most common approach. Even then, the effect usually wears of as new varieties appear that can sidestep ALL of the drugs.
OTOH, there do seem to be approaches that suppress active forms. So with proper treatment continued over the years, and adjusted on an as needed basis, you'll probably die of something else first.
I may be overstating my case, as it's been years since I looked into the matter, but that's the way the situation was a few years ago, and I doubt that it's changed. Possibly the suppressor drugs have gotten more effective, but I'm rather sure I would have heard if there were an actual cure.
Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.
(Score: 2, Informative) by NotSanguine on Monday June 17 2019, @04:58AM (4 children)
Just to clarify, it was unclear what trolling boy was talking about (it often is), but my point was int reply to JoeMerchant's [soylentnews.org] comparison of HIV *infection* (not treatment or cure) with measles infections.
As I pointed out, there is no *vaccine* against HIV. There are certainly treatments that can keep the virus at bay. Apparently, there are also treatments that have (in two cases) put patients into "sustained remission" [statnews.com].
I'm not an AIDS researcher or an epidemiologist, just a somewhat informed layperson, so YMMV.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2) by HiThere on Monday June 17 2019, @04:08PM (3 children)
Yeah, but two cases isn't very remarkable. There were at least two cases that went into remission without any treatment at all. (Of course, that was out of a much larger sample size, but...)
I'm also a bit skeptical about how long those "sustained remission" cases will remain so. IIUC what they are saying is not that they've cleared the virus, but rather that it's currently hiding. And in any case that's no "just a pill", so he's a fucking liar.
Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Monday June 17 2019, @04:42PM (2 children)
I was clarifying *my* statement, [soylentnews.org] which was that no *vaccine* for HIV exists.
As to the "sustained remission" cases, those are extreme outliers, and those folks have *not* been cured (cf. remission [wikipedia.org]).
I do know that there is a cocktail of drugs referred to as Anti-Retroviral Treatment (ART) [nih.gov]:
Why loose your venom on me? I didn't defend the post to which you replied.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2) by HiThere on Monday June 17 2019, @07:35PM (1 child)
It wasn't directed at you. Sorry if you read it that way. (Did I post under the wrong parent?)
Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Monday June 17 2019, @07:42PM
No worries. It's all good.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by Username on Monday June 17 2019, @07:53AM (4 children)
You're still making his point. Smallpox was deadly, so everyone got vaccinated against it. Measles and chickenpox, isnt deadly just annoying, so people decided no to vaccinate.
Let us continue down this slope. Having glasses is annoying. Should we jail parents who do not give their child contacts or corrective surgery? Children don't run around with cleft lips and exposed brains anymore. So why do they have to run around with glasses?
(Score: 5, Insightful) by NotSanguine on Monday June 17 2019, @09:34AM (3 children)
Measles and chicken pox aren't deadly *to most people*. However, they are quite deadly to some, and can cause serious complications in others.
As history tells us [cdc.gov]:
That improved over time, likely due to *isolating those with measles* while they were contagious. As such, by the 1950s,
I don't know about you, but 500 *deaths* plus nearly 50,000 hospitalizations and 1,000 with encephalitis (which can cause serious and permanent brain injury) [encephalitis.info] seems pretty dangerous to me.
Especially since
Since vaccination against measles began, it has prevented the deaths of tens of thousands, prevented brain injuries to double that number, and prevented the hospitalization of even more people, by a factor of 100, I'd say that has a great deal of value.
The Measles vaccine has prevented the death and suffering of millions of people. The loss off herd immunity risks bringing all that back.
Vaccinations stop *preventable* death and suffering. And it's not just those whose parents choose not to vaccinate their children. The vaccine isn't perfect, and some people remain vulnerable. Others, who have compromised immune systems or other health issues cannot be vaccinated. What's more, Measles is *highly* contagious.
Let's make it personal to you. Let's say that some maniac was running around your town beating the crap out of, say, 1 in every 40 people.
Most of those people were not badly hurt, but needed a week or so to recuperate before returning to their jobs, school and lives.
However, a small percentage of the beaten were hit in the head with a tire iron, causing permanent brain damage. And another group were so badly injured that they died.
Now let's say we *knew* that it was crazy Herb Jones who lives over on Maple Street who was doing all those beatings. What do you do?
The mayor calls a town meeting to discuss what's been going on, and ask everyone what he should do about it.
Would you take the same attitude as with measles? "Meh. It's not so bad. Herb doesn't really hurt anyone too badly. It's too much trouble. let's ignore it."
Measles is preventable, highly contagious, and can cause permanent injury and even death.
How is this even a discussion?
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 17 2019, @04:23PM (2 children)
Well, I gotta say I'm not a fan of forcing people to have injections. I am all for vaccinations, but mandated injections feels like a very creepy step towards authoritarianism. I guess as long as they allow people to get their own vaccinations and not use a government mandated doctor it isn't quite as bad.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by NotSanguine on Monday June 17 2019, @05:04PM
The new law doesn't *force* people to vaccinate their kids, all it does is get rid of so-called "religious exemptions."
And let me clarify a bit more. It has been the law in New York for at least 45 years (it was the law when I started school) that parents *must* provide either proof of vaccination or an accepted exemption when enrolling their child in school. If they do not, the child may not attend.
This isn't just elementary school either. It's the law for all New York schools. In fact, I almost didn't get to start college on time, as my vaccination certificate had been lost by my high school and I had to go back to my elementary school to get a copy for the college.
The change in the law just narrows the scope of the exemptions that are acceptable. No one is forcibly injecting anyone. The change is that only *medical* exemptions (for people who, for various reasons cannot be vaccinated) will be accepted when enrolling children in school.
This isn't new or especially controversial. And New York isn't the first state to invalidate religious exemptions either.
I'm sorry if the reality isn't the horrifying nightmare of evil, authoritarians in New York. forcing children to be injected at gunpoint, with god knows what, by nefarious "government" doctors that you thought it was.
Perhaps we can find some other nightmarish scenario for you to worry about instead?
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 18 2019, @04:22PM
I'm not a fan of *forcing* people to shit in a bowl filled with water. Freedom n that.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Monday June 17 2019, @12:06PM (7 children)
Gotta nip this thing in the bud, before it gets outta hand!
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Monday June 17 2019, @12:32PM (6 children)
There. FTFM.
Yep. Before people start dying or getting brain damage. [soylentnews.org]
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Monday June 17 2019, @03:46PM (5 children)
This is political posturing, grandstanding for particular crowds, and shaping public behavior.
What this is NOT is addressing a real crisis with real potential for impactful positive outcome. It's yelling BOO! there's a bogeyman out there and I'm going to protect you - pay no attention to the literally thousands of bigger bogeymen that can be addressed more effectively and efficiently, this one allows me to strike a certain political posture that I think will resonate with my electorate and help me in the future.
Politicians pretending to be out in front of a problem, ignoring the much bigger problems that got out in front of them.
Democracy: We get the leadership we deserve.
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Monday June 17 2019, @05:18PM (4 children)
There's nothing political about the truth.
Measles is highly contagious and can cause brain inflammation (potentially with permanent brain damage) and death.
Without the measles vaccine, thousands would die from it every year, and even more would end up with brain inflammation and other serious issues. How do I know this? Because that's exactly what happened before there was a measles vaccine.
Measles is preventable and should be in the dustbin of history like Smallpox. In fact, widespread vaccination *ended* measles in the United States in 2000. Now, thanks to a bunch of ill-informed, reckless people, measles is back. That it hasn't killed or maimed anyone yet is just dumb luck.
This is a public health issue that, unless dealt with, could cause needless suffering and death.
It's you who is doing the political posturing. And for what? So a bunch of folks that worship an imaginary sky daddy can be frightened into putting their kids and many others at risk? Shame on you!
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Monday June 17 2019, @06:08PM (1 child)
There's no truth worth hearing from a parrot.
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 17 2019, @06:42PM
While you have your fingers in your ears, you might want to cover your eyes too.
Then no one will be able to see you either.
Have fun!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 18 2019, @06:07PM (1 child)
stfu, you stupid fucking cunt.
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Tuesday June 18 2019, @06:20PM
How sweet. Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?
And no. I won't STFU. Kisses, baby!
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr