From Disneyland to Illinois, recent measles outbreaks reignited a nationwide debate on vaccination: who needs it, when to get it, and whether or not it should be compulsory.

Locally, Harker follows the same vaccination policy as the rest of public and private schools in the county, according to Upper School Nurse Clare Elchert.

Ria Gandhi

In other parts of the state and country, vaccination is not compulsory. Some families choose to go unvaccinated because of worries that vaccinations cause autism or are otherwise harmful. Diseases like measles have not been seen in large numbers since the 1950s. Many pointed to “anti-vaxxing” families, as vaccination’s critics have come to be known, as the source of the resurgence, citing the compromise of herd immunity.

The question of whether or not vaccination should be required by law is an ethical one — a constant push and pull between public safety and personal choice. Across the Harker community, students and faculty shared their opinions.

“It’s a no brainer; children should get vaccinated,” said Biology teacher Dr. Matthew Harley. “I think a lot of the issue is ignorance, distrust of medical profession and more generally of science.”

A study originally published in 1998 in a British medical journal, The Lancet, seemed to correlate the measles/mumps/rubella vaccine and autism. The report was later retracted by the journal and the doctor who spearheaded its creation was stripped of his title a little under five years ago, according to a New York Times article written in May of 2010.

In the U.S., all states have medical exemptions for students not healthy enough for immunization, according to Debra Nott, Director of Nursing at the Bucknall campus. Locally, further exceptions exist for certain students.

“California also allows two other exemptions: religious and personal beliefs. On average, 80 percent of the parents who opt not to vaccinate use the personal beliefs option,” she said in an email interview. “In 2012, California changed the exemption law to require parents opting out of immunizations to first discuss their decision with a nurse, nurse practitioner or doctor.”

Nott said that she personally feels it is best for every healthy child to be fully immunized.

“We should have laws for vaccination,” Dr. Harley said. “If you believe in the individual making those choices, I’m okay with having no vaccination laws, but then we should get rid of seatbelts and bike helmet laws.”

This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on March 13, 2015.