Guest guest Posted April 23, 1999 Report Share Posted April 23, 1999 >Please Forward- >IF YOU ARE IN TEXAS, PLEASE CONTACT YOUR LEGISLATORS TO SUPPORT HB 1347. >CONTACT prove@... FOR MORE INFORMATION AND HOW YOU CAN HELP! > >Updated: Thursday, Apr. 22, 1999 at 21:58 CDT > >A Matter of Risk > >Bill would expand parents' leeway in refusing required vaccines > >By Charlotte Huff >Star-Telegram Staff Writer > >Parents could exclude their children from one or more vaccines based >solely on personal objection, under a plan endorsed by a legislative >public health committee. > >At issue is parental rights vs. public health. > >Supporters of House Bill 1347 say parents should be given the >flexibility to weigh the risks and benefits of each vaccine, especially >as the number of mandated shots increases. > >Opponents counter that a generation of adults, personally unfamiliar >with polio and other contagious diseases of the past, will open the door >to future outbreaks. > > " Is it fair for a child that has not been immunized to put at risk the >rest of the population? " asked Dr. Alan Lassiter, president of Cook >Children's Physicians Network. > >The current mandated vaccines, designed for children before they start >school, protect against nine contagious illnesses in a complicated >regimen of nearly 20 shots. > >Last weekend, the Texas Board of Health added two more, requiring the >chickenpox vaccine and expanding the hepatitis B vaccine to include 12- >year-olds. In addition, children living along the border will be >vaccinated against hepatitis A beginning this fall. > >Parents today have two ways to opt out of vaccination. Their doctor can >certify that the shots could pose a medical risk, or the parent can sign >an affidavit certifying that their religious faith opposes it. > >House Bill 1347, passed by the House Public Health Committee this month, >would broaden that religious exemption. > >Parents could decline one or more shots by signing a notarized affidavit >stating that the vaccination conflicts with their conscience or personal >religious belief, said the bill's author, Rep. Rick Green, R- Dripping >Springs. > > " There are a lot of parents in Texas that have one or two immunizations >that they have a problem with, " Green said. > >Green, for example, wants to postpone vaccinating his 2- year-old >against hepatitis B, preferring to decide when he's older. The virus, >which can cause serious liver damage, has been associated with sexual >contact and intravenous drug use. > >Supporters of the vaccine point to data from the Centers for Disease >Control and Prevention showing that roughly one-third of those infected >don't know the source. > >If the legislation passes the House, Sen. Jane , R- Flower Mound, >will carry the Senate version, staff members said. leads the >Health Services Committee. > >But opponents say don't forget the public health success story of >vaccination. > >Smallpox has been eradicated and polio nearly squelched. Before a >vaccine for measles was developed, at least 3 million Americans annually >used to contract the virus, according to the CDC. As many as 9,000 died >annually of whooping cough. > > " But we can't let our guard down, " said Dr. Alecia Hathaway, medical >director of the Tarrant County Public Health Department. > >Several public health opponents said the bill's passage in committee >caught them off guard. They credit the persuasive lobbying power of >PROVE, or Parents Requesting Open Vaccine Education. > > " A parent who wants to claim one of these exemptions is not lazy, " said >Dawn , who founded the Austin-based grassroots organization in >1997. " Informed consent should apply to immunizations as well. " > >Ten thousand to 12,000 reports of vaccine reactions are added each year >to a federally run vaccine database, according to the CDC. Roughly 20 >percent are classified as serious, but it's difficult to prove how many >of the possible reactions were actually caused by the vaccine, the CDC >says. > > agrees that the overall reaction risk is very small. But for >terrified parents, who believe that their own child may be more >vulnerable, societal averages don't make a difference, she said. > >Within the Fort Worth school district, nearly 100 students are exempted >from vaccines for medical or religious reasons, said Jackie , >director of health services. > >Some students have limited immunity for a number of reasons, including >chemotherapy treatment for cancer, she said. Expanding the pool of >unvaccinated students, she said, could put those with limited immunity >at greater risk. > >And even the best vaccines aren't 100 percent effective, so it's >important to vaccinate as many people as possible, medical professionals >say. > >Nearly one-third of the states allow some form of a philosophical or >conscientious objection, according to a 1998 report by the National >Vaccine Advisory Committee. > >The exemptions did seem to leave the children more vulnerable, the >committee reported. From 1985 through 1992, students exempted for >philosophical or religious reasons were 35 times more likely to contract >measles, the report said. > >But, the analysis concluded, given the small percentage of children >exempted, philosophical exemptions don't appear to have a major >detrimental effect on childhood health. > >From >http://www.star-telegram.com/news/doc/1047/1:METRO55/1:METRO55042299. html > >--------------------------------------------------------------------- ------ >Dawn >PROVE(Parents Requesting Open Vaccine Education) >P.O. Box 1071 >Cedar Park, TX 78630-1071 >(512) 918-8760 >prove@... (email) >http://home.swbell.net/prove (web site) >--------------------------------------------------------------------- ------ >PROVE provides information on vaccines, and >immunization policies and practices that affect the >children and adults of Texas. Our mission is to prevent >vaccine injury and death and to promote and protect >the right of every person to make informed independent >vaccination decisions for themselves and their families. >--------------------------------------------------------------------- ------ >This information is not to be construed as medical >OR legal advice. The decision to vaccinate and how >you implement that decision is yours and yours alone. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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