The Importance of Medical Freedom

The Importance of Medical Freedom

Oesa Snee, Staff Reporter

Vaccines, whether you get them or not, are a huge part of American life. Following the schedule from the CDC or just getting a flu shot every year, there are a lot of different kinds of vaccines. One major question associated with vaccines is whether it is fair to require all Americans to be vaccinated, regardless of their own personal wishes.

Oregon Senator Elizabeth Steiner Hayward proposed Senate Bill 442 at the start of this year that would get rid of vaccine exemptions in the State of Oregon. After the coalition Oregonians for Medical Freedom formed, a rally at the capitol and a visit by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., she dropped the bill due to loss of support but has been quoted saying that she will try again to mandate vaccines.

Shortly after dropping SB 442, Senator Steiner Hayward tried another vaccine bill. Senate Bill 895, the new bill, would require schools to track vaccine rates of the children attending their schools as well as keep an updated list posted in their office of the vaccine vs. non-vaccine rate. The rates of vaccines and exemptions would also be sent out to the parents twice a year.

Aside from tracking vaccine exemptions, parents would also be required to have a doctor or designated medical personnel to sign off on their exemptions instead of the previously available video that taught parents about exemptions. Any child that is not up to date with their vaccines, or does not have a current signed off exemption, will not be able to attend school.

Currently, the Oregon vaccine exemption rate as a whole is already available to find but now, in an attempt to bully people into vaccines, it will be a localized source of information available to everyone, raising major medical privacy questions.

However, stating that a child has vaccine exemptions can indicate various things. The rates of vaccine exemptions do not expand to show if the child is fully unvaccinated or just does not have one vaccine. This information is incomplete and will be used as a means of attempting to raise the vaccine rate in Oregon.

Pushing parents into the doctor’s office through bullying and singling out families impedes upon their freedom and right to privacy. Shouldn’t parents have the right to do what is best for their unique child instead of a one size fits all policy? Oregonians should not be required to do something that results in their individual freedom being diminished.

Yes, diseases are terrible, but vaccines are not perfect and shouldn’t be treated as such. Any sort of medical procedure has a risk, yet Senator Steiner Hayward is trying to take away the parental right to decide for their child if they will take the risk or not. In a country that is based on the premise of freedom, we as citizens should not have that freedom restricted.

Creative Commons photo source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/126337682@N08/14784682939