If you pay even a modicum of attention to the news, you probably have heard of the Anti-Vax movement.
The minority of people supporting this movement believe that vaccines are unnatural and dangerous, either for religious reasons or just their personal beliefs. These communities and individuals choose to not expose their children to vaccines that are important to their health.
While one unvaccinated child on his or her own isn’t particularly dangerous, if more than 6% of a community is unvaccinated, disease can begin to spread, even to those who are vaccinated.
According to the Oxford Vaccine Group, 94-95% of a community has to be vaccinated to prevent the spread of disease. This is known as “Herd Immunity” and is an important part of understanding why the Anti-Vax movement is so dangerous.
The modern Anti-Vax movement has its origins in a study conducted by the scientist Andrew Wakefield which claimed to prove a link between vaccines and autism. However, this study was discredited in 2010.
Despite the substantial amount of evidence disproving Wakefield’s argument, the Anti-Vax community continues to cite this “research” as a testament against vaccines.
Some in this movement also believe that the purpose of vaccines is to get you sick, so that Pharmaceutical companies can sell you medicine and make more money. There is zero proof for this supposition.
I decided it would be best to get a medical professional’s take on this, so I interviewed my mother, Doctor Sheryl Jawetz. Dr. Jawetz works at Tenafly Pediatrics, a pediatric practice in Northern Jersey; she has been practicing medicine for over 15 years.
Dr. Jawetz told me that Tenafly Pediatrics have a strict pro-vaccination policy in place, which forbids anti-vaxxers from being part of their practice. This, apparently, is also true of most pediatric clinics.
I asked her why it was important to be pro-vaccination. Jawetz responded, “Unvaccinated children pose a significant health risk, not only to themselves, but to others.”
Jawetz also said that getting an exemption from vaccines for religious reasons is not a valid excuse, as it is still a health risk. She said that all major religious leaders agree on that point.
Schools have been preventing unvaccinated children from attending. Most states require students to be vaccinated before they can attend school. New York State recently declared that religious exemptions were no longer a valid excuse, following multiple measles outbreaks in New York City and Rockland County. Dr. Jawetz agreed that unvaccinated children shouldn’t be allowed in schools.
The anti-vax movement is nothing new. People have been opposed to vaccines ever since the late 1700s, when the first smallpox vaccine was first invented,. The movement gained even more popularity in the 1980’s.
This popularity grew even larger in the 1990’s after Wakefield’s study. Many famous people came out in support of the anti-vax movement, leading to more people than ever refusing vaccinations.
I questioned TABC School Nurse Robin Insler to learn her opinion about vaccinations in schools.
Insler has eight years experience in Nursing. Drawing on this experience, Insler said that vaccines should be mandatory with zero exceptions.
She added that if any TABC student’s immunization records were not up to date, that student wouldn’t be allowed in the school. If there is a student here for whom this is true, there is a possibility that the entire school could be shut down by the state, due to health and safety concerns.
I asked TABC Principal Rabbi Asher Yablok to comment on the subject of anti-vaccination and its relation with Judaism.
In relation to anti-vaccination as a general issue, Yablok said: “This issue highlights one of the unique aspects of America, because it focuses on the conflict between freedom of choice versus safety.”
When asked about anti-vaccination in schools specifically, Yablok agreed that it’s a potential risk to the rest of the community who might otherwise think they were safe. Personally, he believes all students should be vaccinated.
However, Yablok told me that there was no rule in TABCs official handbook forbidding anti-vaxxers from attending school (though it is still required by the state). When it comes to unvaccinated teachers, Yablok considers them the same as unvaccinated students.
In addition, Yablok spoke about vaccinations in relation to Judaism. He said that our commitment to Torah demands that we take precautions to protect ourselves. Vaccinations help us accomplish that.
Yablok added that he would not personally judge someone who chooses to not be vaccinated, because it is that person’s choice. However, such people should be careful and keep in mind that they could end up harming others.
In my personal opinion, not vaccinating is a very unsafe thing to do, and can put more than just yourself at risk. Vaccines were created for a reason and have helped people for many years.