A March 2023 Pew Research poll found that 88% of Americans believe the benefits of the MMR vaccine outweigh the risks, a percentage that has remained largely consistent since before the pandemic.
But support for mandatory vaccinations in schools has declined across the board. 28% of respondents now say parents should make the decision not to vaccinate their children, even if it poses a health risk to others, up from 16% in October 2019. The share of Republicans has more than doubled from 20% in 2019. In 2023 he will be 42%.
The poll found support for the MMR vaccine was low among parents of young children. Approximately 65% of parents of children under 5 years of age report a high preventive health benefit of MMR (compared to 88% of adults overall), and 39% report a moderate or high risk of side effects. I answered yes. Half said they were concerned about whether all childhood vaccines are needed.
Tara Larson, a retired ER nurse who lives in Santa Monica, Calif., said she became concerned about childhood vaccinations when she became pregnant last year. She says, “I started watching anti-vaccine documentaries, reading package inserts about vaccine safety, and following several social media accounts to make us savvy vaccinators.'' We are not anti-vaccine,” she said.
Larson postponed vaccinating her son until he was 3 months old, limiting his son to only three vaccines that he thought he would need in his first year, and spreading out the shots so that he only received one a month. I thought about it. “By the time he starts playing on the playground and goes to school, we will need to start treating him for the hepatitis B virus. But why should he be over-vaccinated now?” she said.
The first pediatrician she saw refused to follow her requested schedule. But Larson said she left the house because “in her heart, she felt this was the right thing to do for her baby.” After several weeks of searching, she found an all-inclusive provider that charged $250 per month and agreed to her approach.
She said she has not yet decided whether her son, now 8 months old, will get the MMR vaccine once he is eligible. “I think some doctors say wait until the child is three years old, but that's when the measles hasn't come back,” she says. “That’s what I need to work on next.”
Casares, a pediatrician in Oregon, said there is no scientific basis or known benefit to delaying vaccinations except in very rare medical circumstances.
Casares said the problem is that parents have an “exposure bias.” They often consume large amounts of information on social media about risks, but know little about the benefits of vaccines or the huge risks of the disease itself. He said that in countries like the United States, where vaccination rates are fairly high, most people are unaware of the devastation this disease can cause if vaccination rates drop.
– Written by Jenny Gold, Los Angeles Times (TNS)
This article is part of The Times' Early Childhood Education Initiative, which focuses on the learning and development of California's children from birth to age 5. To learn more about this initiative and its philanthropic funders, visit latimes.com/earlyed.
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