Stricter Penalties for Parents Who Don't Vaccinate Their Children

Running head: SOCIETY AND CULTURE.
Society and Culture:
Name of the Student;
Name of the University:
Author Note:

SOCIETY AND CULTURE1
Introduction:
Vaccination is the practical process in which the children are injected with chemical
compound of medicines which helps their immune system to fight with diseases. These
vaccines help the immune system to fight against the external agents and germs and boots up
the power of the white blood cells for fighting against those germ cells. It should be the duty
of the parents to safeguard their children from the dread of diseases when their immune
system is developing. The hypothesis of this report is whether there should be stricter
penalties in Australia for parents who does not vaccinate their children. The report involves
the discussion of a few questions that demand a focus on. It studies the pros and cons of the
parents who treat their children, the penalties that they need to suffer if they do not vaccinate
their children, as well as should there be more strict policies that must be implemented on the
parents who do not care to immunize their children.
Discussion:
What are the pros and cons of parents vaccinating children?
Vaccination is recommended by The Centers for Disease Control (CDC). There
should be immunization of 29 doses of 9 vaccines along with a yearly flu vaccine for the
children till six years of age. However, there are proponents as well as opponents who have
their views for and against this vaccination. Some people say that the immunization for the
children is one of the safest and the most significant health development of the 20th century.
On the other hand, some people oppose this and claims that the use of vaccination would be
lowering the natural process of the body fighting against germ cells.
The positive impact of the vaccination involves the process saving the lives of the
children, and preventing dreadful severe diseases from entering their body. According to a
study, childhood vaccines are almost 90-99 percent effective in preventing infections2. The

SOCIETY AND CULTURE2
ingredients like aluminum, thimerosal and formaldehyde used in the vaccines are used in less
amonts. This prevents diseases and is not harmful to the children1. The process of vaccination
is stated to be safe by a lot of medical organizations such as CDC, Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) and others. The adverse reactions to the vaccines are infrequent. The
parents refuse to vaccinate their children even though the vaccines protect the immunity of
the community. In the interview, Julia Leask explains, "Vaccines are estimated to save about
3 million lives each year by preventing diseases like whooping cough, polio, diphtheria and
measles4. The vast majority of scientific literature supports the benefits of vaccines, experts
etc. The HPV vaccine is given to males and female students in year 7 or 8. It has already
reduced the incidence of pre-cancer in young women in Australia. This vaccination program
began in 2007, and so we are already starting to see these effects in young women who would
otherwise have gotten early cancer. We expect to see impacts on other genital, anal and oral
cancers and wart viruses prevented by this vaccine."
Not only the vaccines save lives but also they save money. It is cost-effective and is
continuously monitored for safety. Vaccination provide economic benefits to the society, and
from the estimation it have been proven CDC have vaccinated children who were born in the
year between 1994 and 2018, which eventually yielded the net savings by almost $406 billion
and also savings the societal costs2. The evidence gathered all across the world by The Center
for Disease Control shows that high HPV vaccine coverage helps to drastically reduce the
prevalence of HPV disease in a relatively short period. The following graph depicts the
impact of this vaccination in Australia.
1 Australians' attitudes to vaccination are more complex than a simple 'pro' or 'anti' label 2017, The
Conversation, viewed 20 June 2019, <http://theconversation.com/australians-attitudes-to-vaccination-are-more-
complex-than-a-simple-pro-or-anti-label-74245>
2 Heyworth, K 2015, Vaccines: The Reality Behind the Debate, Parents, viewed 26 June 2019,
<https://www.parents.com/health/vaccines/controversy/vaccines-the-reality-behind-the-debate/>.

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Fig: Impact of HPV vaccination in Australia3
On the contrary, vaccination has several disadvantages as well. It can cause severe
and often fatal side effects, including the grave risk of life-threatening allergic reactions. The
vaccines may contain harmful mixtures of unknown chemical compounds which however is
used in excess manner, could harm the children adversely5. The parents must decide whether
to vaccinate their children or not since the medical decisions for their children should be their
responsibility. Several religions oppose mandatory vaccines. In these cases, the vaccination
often tends to infringe upon the constitutionally protected religious freedom of the
individuals. Furthermore, there are some particular chemical mixture of medicines in the
vaccines whose use could be considered to be immoral6. The primary cons of the vaccination
are that it is unnatural and external, which prevents the children from fighting against the
diseases naturally. Also, moist diseases that the vaccines target are relatively harmless which
makes the gentle vaccination4
3 Source: www.cdc.gov. , 2019
4 Rettner, R 2012, HPV Vaccine Safe, But May Raise Risk of Fainting & Infections, Live Science, viewed 26
June 2019, <https://www.livescience.com/23617-hpv-vaccine-side-effects.html>.