America’s Fear with Vaccinations
Many people are viewing America’s Covid vaccine hesitancy first hand and shuttering at the implications it entails. However, the American population as a whole very rarely understands the long-standing tradition relating to health rights and vaccination hesitancy. Throughout our relatively short history as a country, there have been many moments that show that we, as Americans, tend to opt for the easier thing and take our chances. We do have several mandated vaccinations, usually for children, but many religious and cultural perspectives bring into question whether someone can be forced in the US to put something into their body.
The first legal dispute to date in the United States happened in 1905, where a Pastor named Henning Jacobson, disagreed with Massachusetts’ mandatory vaccination of smallpox. His childhood in Sweden consisted of the countrywide mandate for the vaccine, but he also saw some of the side effects caused when taking it. Fearing the reaction was too great a risk, for himself and his son, he sued the state. The case was brought before the supreme court and decided in the State’s favor. “The Court rejected Jacobson’s challenge. This seminal 1905 ruling has served as the foundation for state actions to limit individual liberties in order to protect the public’s health.”
American’s hold a valuable freedom/right to choose many of the things that occur in their lives, from religious denomination all the way down to food. With those freedoms come many opportunities to seek alternatives to the obstacles present in their day-to-day lives. Of course, the effectiveness and value of the treatment usually depend on a variety of factors. The safety of the population as a whole, more often than not, steers the perspective of governing leaders, when deciding where to draw the line. Most US states, excluding West Virginia and Mississippi, do have laws in place for vaccination. However, Religious exemptions or other social or cultural perspectives can trump laws. Pointing out that respecting your First Amendment rights to freedom against persecution based on religious beliefs, is a valid point when asking people to take something that isn't 100 percent effective.
America has had several medical diseases that have happened throughout its history. Typhoid in 1906 New York, Polio from the 1910s through the 1950s, HIV/AIDS pandemic in the 1970s, Measles in the 1980s, or even H1N1, hitting the U.S. in 1918 and again in the 21st Century (2009). Vaccines have been instrumental in many of these outbreaks, as well as research into medications and preventative measures to help. With the advancement of science to combat these diseases, there's an equal amount of pushback for freedom of choice. With a “survival of the fittest” mentality, there are a lot of people who feel we have gone too far in terms of protection. The point being, that controlling how a person lives, prevents the freedom of life. However, by saying that your belief validates your choice not to vaccinate, it contradicts other people’s pursuit of Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness. While the individual maintains some of their freedoms, it in fact takes away from the rights of others. The individual is happy with the outcome, but it actively removes choice from others in the form of their safety and happiness, by risking their livelihood.
Truly the fear of loss drives many people’s decision to not vaccinate. Whether it be their freedom to choose or a side-effect that they feel is not worth the risk. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has an extremely comprehensive and strict regulation process, in order to allow vaccines to be distributed to the public. The CDC shows this process and requirements on their website for transparency. Fear of losing their freedoms is an understandable feeling, but the U.S. has many avenues to learn what you are taking and how it will benefit you.
Many criticized the length of time it took to produce the COVID-19 vaccine, however, this enabled a small number of adverse effects. When testing a large group of vaccine participants, with a placebo control group, side effects causing Serious Adverse Events showed, “The proportions of participants who reported at least one serious adverse event were 0.4 percent in the vaccine group and 0.2 percent in the placebo group. No serious adverse events were considered by the FDA as possibly related to the vaccine.”
When weighing the options affecting countrywide health, the risks associated with non-vaccination, show to be much worse than the alternative. While a small amount of freedom is controlled, by requiring vaccinations, the health of everyone is protected. It's not as though the requirement to take certain vaccinations is new to America. We have had many past situations that deemed vaccination necessary, and even today with children as they grow into our society. The feeling of losing the right to choose is perhaps a major sore spot to many. However, the community wellbeing that allows these freedoms, at the end of the day, is saved.
