this post was submitted on 03 Dec 2023
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290
‘Medical Freedom’ Activists Take Aim at New Target: Childhood Vaccine Mandates (www.nytimes.com)
submitted 11 months ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world
104 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Mississippi has long had high childhood immunization rates, but a federal judge has ordered the state to allow parents to opt out on religious grounds.

For more than 40 years, Mississippi had one of the strictest school vaccination requirements in the nation, and its high childhood immunization rates have been a source of pride. But in July, the state began excusing children from vaccination if their parents cited religious objections, after a federal judge sided with a “medical freedom” group.

Today, 2,100 Mississippi schoolchildren are officially exempt from vaccination on religious grounds. Five hundred more are exempt because their health precludes vaccination. Dr. Daniel P. Edney, the state health officer, warns that if the total number of exemptions climbs above 3,000, Mississippi will once again face the risk of deadly diseases that are now just a memory.

“For the last 40 years, our main goal has been to protect those children at highest risk of measles, mumps, rubella, polio,” Dr. Edney said in an interview, “and that’s those children that have chronic illnesses that make them more vulnerable.” He called the ruling “a very bitter pill for me to swallow.”

Mississippi is not an isolated case. Buoyed by their success at overturning coronavirus mandates, medical and religious freedom groups are taking aim at a new target: childhood school vaccine mandates, long considered the foundation of the nation’s defense against infectious disease.

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[–] TWeaK@lemm.ee 32 points 11 months ago (4 children)

What religions are against vaccines??

[–] AceFuzzLord@lemm.ee 28 points 11 months ago (1 children)

I don't recall any of the major accepted religions saying that anything like a vaccine is bad. But these are the types of people who will probably use religion as a way to get out of anything they don't like or they think it challenges "God's plan", even if it lets them live longer.

[–] TWeaK@lemm.ee 17 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Yeah but this is exactly the kind of thing that should be rejected as it is not "a sincerely held religious belief". You can't claim it's a religious belief when your religion does not hold that belief, only you do.

[–] bluGill@kbin.social 11 points 11 months ago (1 children)

The US has religious freedom in the extreme. Anything you make up to worship religiously is considered a religion by default. It takes very strong evidence to prove otherwise.

There are pros and cons to that, this is one of the cons.

[–] Spuddlesv2@lemmy.ca 1 points 11 months ago (1 children)

What are the pros?

[–] bluGill@kbin.social 1 points 11 months ago (1 children)

You are not forced to worship and otherwise support some 'god' that you don't believe in.

[–] Spuddlesv2@lemmy.ca 2 points 11 months ago

There are plenty of countries that don’t force worship etc without any sort of over the top “religious freedom”.

[–] AbidanYre@lemmy.world 11 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Christ Scientists and Jehovah's Witnesses are the only two I can think of that might, and even them I'm not sure about.

[–] Saganaki@lemmy.one 9 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Christian Scientists are indeed against them. Jehovahs do vaccinations but not blood transfusions.

Blood transfusions honestly are not a problem most of the time, though. I’ve heard many stories about doctors just overriding the parents wishes due to emergency and the parents generally sigh with relief.

[–] afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world 1 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Giving a blood transfusion against patient stated wishes is assault. I don't doubt you heard something but I don't think you heard it correctly.

[–] Saganaki@lemmy.one 7 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

A medical practitioner should inform the parent(s) of Jehovah’s Witness children that whilst he/she will try to respect their religious views, if a blood transfusion is required to save the child’s life, or prevent severe harm, it will be administered without their consent, unless they obtain a court order prohibiting this.

https://www.medicalprotection.org/southafrica/casebook/casebook-may-2014/the-challenges-of-treating-jehovahs-witnesses#:~:text=A%20medical%20practitioner%20should%20inform,obtain%20a%20court%20order%20prohibiting

I wasn’t 100% clear, but context of my comment is children—so my comment was geared towards children. Adults are a different ballgame.

[–] A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.world 6 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

None.

Its cherry picking what suits their argument in the moment.

Same reason they'd get offended and file criminal complaints if you throw stones at them for wearing mixed fiber clothing.