Should childhood vaccination be mandatory?
Yes, childhood vaccination should be mandatory. For instance, a vaccine refers to a weakened form of a germ that causes the disease in question. Therefore, when children are administered vaccines, their immune system develops antibodies against the actual disease if exposed to the germ that causes the disease. The American Academy of Pediatrics state that most vaccines administered to children are 90-99% effective in protecting them against diseases. They have also confirmed that vaccines protect children from contracting up to 14 different kinds of diseases like diphtheria, tetanus, polio, amongst many others. Furthermore, vaccinations have also been established to protect the children they are administered to and other kids from contracting the diseases that could be passed on from child to child.
Childhood vaccinations have received several arguments over safety from different paediatrics on whether or not it should be mandatory over the years. However, there has never been any substantial evidence of harm found, even though children may have possible reactions to different vaccines. Therefore, it should be known that the benefits of vaccinations outweigh their shortcomings and that they are also administered to improve the children’s fragile immune system to harmful diseases.
Reference
Kennedy, J. “Should childhood vaccinations be mandatory?.” Perspectives in public health 140.1 (2020): 23-24.