SchaferAutismReport: More Vaccine Skeptics Seek Exemptions

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Subject: More Vaccine Skeptics Seek Exemptions

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PUBLIC HEALTH

More Vaccine Skeptics Seek Exemptions

Dr Wakefield On MMR Vaccine In Sunday Express, UK

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PUBLIC HEALTH

More Vaccine Skeptics Seek Exemptions

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McCoy doesn't go to a church or a

temple or any house of worship to practice her religion.

Her religion doesn't have an official name.

She says she believes in God or " some other higher being. " But

when it comes to vaccines, or other medical practices she calls

" unnecessary, " McCoy follows a very specific doctrine.

" We believe that the body has an innate

ability to heal itself and by injecting live viruses into our child we are

interfering with that divine process, " said McCoy, 39, of Cold Spring.

McCoy has refused all vaccines for her

5-year-old son, , who attends a private pre-K in the area. When he

enrolls in kindergarten next year, McCoy plans to join the ranks of parents

in the Lower Hudson Valley who claim vaccinations violate their religious

beliefs.

This small but growing number of parents are

telling school districts that their religion exempts them from a law that

requires school-age children to be vaccinated against diseases like

measles, mumps, polio, whooping cough and chicken pox.

In New York, the number of applications for

religious exemptions doubled between 1999 and 2006 for children entering

schools including pre-K and some day care centers, data from the state

Health Department indicates. The number of children granted medical

exemptions rose slightly.

While some parents like McCoy say they have

strongly held beliefs, they also represent an expanding population of

vaccine skeptics just as vaccine proponents are trying to pass legislation

to add more to the school required list like the flu shot and Gardasil, a

vaccine aimed at preventing cervical cancer.

Some say they are concerned that a vaccine

preservative causes autism or other chronic conditions like asthma and

diabetes. Others say there are too many shots - nearly 60 - that a child

must receive throughout his or her school career. The mandates are also an

issue - few parents want the government to interfere with their child

rearing or deny their children an education if they don't comply.

Parent advocates like Rita Palma, who runs a

Web site, www.mykidsmychoice.com, say there's " a pro-choice vaccine

movement " happening in the state.

She and nearly 100 others rallied in Albany

this summer against adding more vaccines to the list.

They also asked for support of two other

bills: one that would protect families seeking religious exemptions from

" inappropriate and intrusive inquiry, " and another that would

allow parents to apply for personal or philosophical exemptions.

" Ten years ago, this was a major fringe

community, but now you have many more parents questioning vaccines and

wanting to take responsibility for their children's health, " said

Palma, who has two sons and lives in Bayport, Long Island.

The state Education Department allows

parents to download a form on its Web site to apply for medical or

religious exemptions. http://tinyurl.com/43b7cw

All states in the U.S. allow medical exemptions.

All but two states allow religious exemptions and 18 states allow personal

or philosophical exemptions.

Medical exemptions are less common because

they require a pediatrician's signature.

But to get a religious exemption, parents submit

a written statement stating they object to vaccines " due to sincere

and genuine religious beliefs which prohibit the immunization of their

child. "

The law allows principals and individual

school districts in the state to determine whether the religious exemption

is genuine.

In some school districts, submitting the

paperwork is sufficient. Other school districts have asked parents for

additional documentation or evidence to support their religious beliefs

like written bylaws. In her school district, officials conduct

" sincerity " interviews with parents claiming religious

exceptions, Palma said.

" What is a sincere religious

belief? " Palma asked.

School districts have been known to expel

students from school, even after their parents submitted religious

exemptions. Challenges to parents' religious beliefs vary, some resulting

in legal action.

In Rockland County, Lynn Friedman, a

chiropractor, unsuccessfully sued the stown school district to allow

her son to attend school without vaccinations. The school district

questioned the validity of her request for a religious exemption.

The school district would not comment on the

case, a spokeswoman said.

One county in land last year threatened

parents with fines and jail time if they didn't vaccinate their children.

The " pro-choice " vaccine movement

worries some public health officials who contend that vaccines are

paramount to healthy children and disease-free communities.

Nationwide immunization rates are still high

- about 90 percent of children are vaccinated - according to the Centers

for Disease Control and Prevention.

" Requiring immunizations for children

to attend and remain in school was the single most effective policy to

reduce the rates of very serious childhood diseases, " said Dr.

Amler, head of the School of Public Health at New York Medical College in

Valhalla.

But some diseases are coming back, health

officials say.

Last week, a coalition of the nation's most

influential medical groups issued a statement calling to restore public

confidence in vaccine safety. The statement was prompted by a recent

measles outbreak in several U.S. cities, they said. This year, 131 children

had the measles - the highest number in more than a decade.

New York had the second-highest rate of

measles cases this year, behind Illinois.

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