Vaccination safeguards both personal and community health. But a recent outbreak of the measles in Washington state is revealing the necessity for high vaccination rates. Every state allows medical exemptions and many allow religious exemptions. But Washington state, along with about 20 other states, allows for a philosophical exemption for families who disagree with the mandate to vaccinate.
New Hampshire allows no such exemption — and the Granite State boasts one of the highest vaccination rates nationally. But the number of religious exemptions is on the rise. On the verge of a Hepatitis A outbreak in the state, we talk to medical providers about vaccines in early childhood and what risks unvaccinated youth pose to the greater community.
CORRECTION/PRODUCER NOTES: After this show, we heard from many listeners concerned about comments regarding aluminum and vaccines. As the CDC explains here, aluminum is used as an adjuvant, not as a preservative.
We also heard from listeners concerned that we did not discuss the National Vaccine Injury Compensatoin Program. You can find information on that program here.
GUESTS
- Kathy Barth - the Head of New Hampshire School Nurses Association and school nurse at Crossroads Academy in Lyme, N.H.
- Dr. Benjamin Chan - the State Epidemiologist for the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services and internist and infectious diseases specialist at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.
Dr. Patricia Edwards - a pediatrician at Concord Pediatrics, a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a member of the New Hampshire Vaccine Association.
Related Reading
- Check to see if your child is on track with the CDC's schedule of reccomended vaccinations.
- The New Hampshire legistlature passed a measure to begin a vaccine registry but three years later, the technology to host the registry is presenting some problems.
- New Hampshire has one of the highest vaccination rates nationally.
