Whose Responsibility is it to Get a Child Vaccinated for Measles?

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Posted: Jun 15th, 2016 at 02:14PM - by e7 Health

Arizona is one state that currently allows parents to opt out of getting their children vaccinated for Measles in order to enter into school. The AZ Central online newspaper recently did an article stating how the state needs to take more responsibility in tracking unimmunized children, and do their part in helping to keep children safe. This brings to question, is it really a state responsibility or the parents responsibility, or both, when it comes to making sure children are immunized.

The state of Arizona allows each parent to make a decision on weather or not their child should be immunized, on their own. There doesn't necessarilly have to be a religious exemption or philosophical objection to the vaccine. Many parents don't get their children vaccinated because they really think it's going to hurt them more than save them, or they base their decisons on "unproved claims" that the vaccine is actually dangerous and harming their child. Just because the state allows parents to choose exemption, doesn't mean though that the schools agree with it. Schools have a parent sign a waver that states that they have declined vaccines for their child, and it's kept on file. Data was collected by the Arizona Republic that they got from the Arizona Department of Health Services. According to the data, about 3 in 10 Kindergartners who didn't get vaccinated for measles, did not have a school waver form on file. Why is this so important? Having the waver on file shows that the schools let the parents know about the risks of not vaccinating. Another big reason the waver is important is because if there is an outbreak, it can help identify which kids aren't vaccinated. The children who are not protected during an outbreak can be sent home to be protected and away from the virus.

The state has finally (somewhat) stepped in to let the schools know that they are aware of the missing exemption forms and the fact that schools are not staying in compliance. There technically aren't any measures though to actually enforce the forms be filled out. The Arizona Republic states that they heavily feel that schools need to take more responsibility to keep the proper records on their students, so as to protect all of their students and staff.

Arizona recently had a Measles outbreak that originated in a detention center in Eloy, Arizona. The cases are all focused at this detention facility, but the public is being warned of more than a dozen places in Maricopa and Pinal counties where people may have been exposed. There were eleven confirmed cases of Measles and more infections are likely. Heath officials openly said that they were concerned because of the "anti-vaxxer" movement, where people are refusing to vaccinate their children. When it comes down to it, parents need to be aware of why it's important to vaccinate your children, and the dangers of not vaccinating them. Schools, if they play a large role in the exemption process like they do in Arizona, need to be sure that they are staying in compliance and following all of the standard operating procedures when it comes to documenting children who are not vaccinated. As for states, all states have different laws. Arizona's laws are a little more lax, but certain states have all together almost gotten rid of exemptions for children. Some states even threaten punishments on parents for not vaccinating their children. As the old saying goes, "it takes a village to raise a child". For Arizona, all three of the above components need to be working together to protect again future outbreaks.

At e7 Health, we provide the Measles, Mumps, Rubella vaccine for work, school travel or for general health purposes. Call us today at 702-800-2723 (Las Vegas) to book your appointment or click here to book your appointment on our website.

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