Shahadat Rahman
September 30, 2017
Professor Matyakubova
Argumentative Essay First Draft
Vaccination: The
Underappreciated Miracle
Vaccination
is considered one of the biggest modern-day medical miracles, becoming a
standard in contemporary society. The justification for the widespread integration
of vaccines is simple; they help prevent diseases before they infect a victim.
What’s really surprising, though, is the source of the efficiency of vaccines:
the disease they’re meant to fight. Vaccines provide an innocuous version of an
ailment, allowing the antibodies in the body to learn to resist this particular
condition if it appears again. Therefore, more vaccinated people equates to
less sick people. Consequently, increased prevention against certain illnesses
also leads to their diminishment, allowing these diseases to continue to exist
only in history books. Not only that, but vaccines save families and hospitals
millions of dollars every year by simplifying, and even eliminating, the
treatment of several contagions. Yet despite all these benefits, there are
those that doubt the application of vaccines, leading to a portion of the
population susceptible to a host of infections. These skeptics claim that there
are unknown risks involved in the use of vaccinations and mandating vaccines
would infringe on the personal liberties of an individual. Although there are
several concerns about the integration of vaccines, the value of vaccinations
outweighs the potential drawbacks, warranting governments to make them
mandatory.
It was less than 60 years ago that measles was as common
as the flu, with nearly all children contracting the disease by the time they
were 15, until vaccines made this ubiquitous illness into a rare diagnosis. In
fact, it was estimated that approximately 4 million people in the United States
were infected with measles every year in the decade before the vaccine was
developed in 1963. But the American health landscape rapidly transformed once
the measles vaccine was developed in 1963. The vaccine was widely distributed
throughout the United States and the measles vaccination rate steadily
increased while the number of measles cases steadily decreased— within a year
the number of measles cases decreased by 80%. In recent years the measles
vaccination rate has reached an astounding 91% in the United States.
Furthermore, there were only 70 cases of 
measles
in 2016 and only 350 cases in the past 3 years. This is less than 1% of the
prevalence measles once had in the United States. In addition, the majority of
people who were diagnosed with measles in recent years were people who were
unvaccinated and also lived in communities with other unvaccinated people. Mandating
the administration of vaccines, especially to enter school settings, would
promote healthier environments for the general population. There are still
several people who are unable to be vaccinated—such as children under the ages
of one—that would be left susceptible to disease that don’t have to be,
especially in areas dense with people who are unvaccinated. Some people can’t
even receive vaccines due to the fact that they have compromised immune
systems, so even innocuous versions of a disease could be life-threatening.
Vaccines are not an issue of an individual, they concern the entire well-being
of a community. They are clearly effective and since it is the responsibility
of the government to ensure the well-being of the American community, the
government should mandate the administration of vaccines.
measles
in 2016 and only 350 cases in the past 3 years. This is less than 1% of the
prevalence measles once had in the United States. In addition, the majority of
people who were diagnosed with measles in recent years were people who were
unvaccinated and also lived in communities with other unvaccinated people. Mandating
the administration of vaccines, especially to enter school settings, would
promote healthier environments for the general population. There are still
several people who are unable to be vaccinated—such as children under the ages
of one—that would be left susceptible to disease that don’t have to be,
especially in areas dense with people who are unvaccinated. Some people can’t
even receive vaccines due to the fact that they have compromised immune
systems, so even innocuous versions of a disease could be life-threatening.
Vaccines are not an issue of an individual, they concern the entire well-being
of a community. They are clearly effective and since it is the responsibility
of the government to ensure the well-being of the American community, the
government should mandate the administration of vaccines.
While the benefits of vaccines are obvious, there are
skeptics who doubt the implementation of mandatory vaccinations due to
questions of effectiveness. These are often young people who have never truly
seen the dangers of epidemics and the miracles of vaccines. In fact, a study on
the views in different age groups on childhood vaccinations found that the
largest percentage of people who believed that vaccines should not be required
were between 
ages
18-29. Inversely, the smallest percentage of people who believed vaccines
should not be required were over age 65. Older people have seen the
effectiveness of vaccines with their own eyes. They have seen the rise and fall
of several epidemics including polio, measles, and rubella due to the use of
vaccines. On the other hand, younger people have lived with these vaccines
their whole lives, so they would not be able to visualize a world in which
vaccines didn’t exist. These skeptics of vaccines, such as Jack Wolfson, DO,
cardiologist at Wolfson Integrative Cardiology, instead have claimed that
children should be allowed to contract illnesses to gain resistance naturally. The
immune system has long been fighting infectious diseases before the first
vaccine was created and this method should not be overlooked, claims Wolfson.
This argumentation is flawed primarily because it assumes that all diseases
that have vaccines also have cures. It is important to make the distinction
that a vaccine is not a cure, it simply prevents a body from ever being
infected. One that is already affected by a disease requires a cure. Therefore,
this logic would be ineffective because diseases with permanent physical side
effects and no cure, like polio, would already affect its victims. Vaccines
provide a sensible alternative where a cure is not needed if the virus could
never be contracted. This not only protects people preemptively but also leads
to the diminishment of diseases in the overall population over time, until they
eventually disappear.
ages
18-29. Inversely, the smallest percentage of people who believed vaccines
should not be required were over age 65. Older people have seen the
effectiveness of vaccines with their own eyes. They have seen the rise and fall
of several epidemics including polio, measles, and rubella due to the use of
vaccines. On the other hand, younger people have lived with these vaccines
their whole lives, so they would not be able to visualize a world in which
vaccines didn’t exist. These skeptics of vaccines, such as Jack Wolfson, DO,
cardiologist at Wolfson Integrative Cardiology, instead have claimed that
children should be allowed to contract illnesses to gain resistance naturally. The
immune system has long been fighting infectious diseases before the first
vaccine was created and this method should not be overlooked, claims Wolfson.
This argumentation is flawed primarily because it assumes that all diseases
that have vaccines also have cures. It is important to make the distinction
that a vaccine is not a cure, it simply prevents a body from ever being
infected. One that is already affected by a disease requires a cure. Therefore,
this logic would be ineffective because diseases with permanent physical side
effects and no cure, like polio, would already affect its victims. Vaccines
provide a sensible alternative where a cure is not needed if the virus could
never be contracted. This not only protects people preemptively but also leads
to the diminishment of diseases in the overall population over time, until they
eventually disappear.
The use of vaccines not only minimizes the dangers of
different diseases, but large numbers of immunized people can protect those who
are unable to vaccinated and eventually leads to abating numbers of certain
maladies in society. For example, if a large percentage of a population is
immunized against a contagion, then even those who cannot be vaccinated would
be protected as well. This concept, known as herd immunity, proposes that the
vaccination level of the population must be about 90% for all members to be
protected. This would help defend babies who cannot yet receive vaccinations as
well as immunocompromised individuals. The disease would not be able to spread
to a population if the vast majority is immune. Yet, if the percentage of the
population that is protected drops drastically, the disease would be able to
spread through populations and these special individuals would no longer be
protected. Mandating vaccination of
certain diseases would not only also lead to a better protected population, but
also less use of specific vaccines. For example, vaccinations combating smallpox
are no longer needed due to the fact that the disease no longer exists. Since
the creation of the smallpox vaccine, the last case of smallpox in the world
was in 1977. This would lead to a safer environment for everyone in the
population, as there are less dangers that people are susceptible to falling
victim to.
Despite evidence that vaccines help defend the
population, some people worry that it actually attacks something just as
important as health: personal liberties. Similar to how the government cannot
force anyone to be treated for an injury, some believe the government should
not be able to force vaccinations. Vaccinations are perceived as a personal
medical choice and the government has no right to intrude on such choices. This
would violate the idea that medical decisions require consent from the patient
if the government is allowed to control these medical decisions. The difference
is, though, that unlike treating injuries vaccinations not only affect the
individual, but the overall population as well. The decision to not administer
vaccines can help infections propagate and spread throughout a community.
Consequently, this forces an unsafe environment on parents who seek to raise
their children in environments that are free of certain diseases. Furthermore,
the government’s responsibility is not to a single individual but the overall
population. The government must do what is best for the community, and in this
case it gives it the right to mandate vaccinations.
Aside from the medical reasons vaccinations are
beneficial, vaccinations also help hospitals and researchers as well as
families economically. With the administration of vaccines, families no longer
need to worry about the potential costs in treatment for particular diseases.
Instead, it is ensured that the child will already be able to defend itself
from certain illnesses. This is also a relief for researchers, who no longer
need to spend resources trying to find a cure or developing treatment plans for
certain diseases. Instead, researchers can allocate their time and money to
investigating ailments that don’t have cures or vaccines. This benefits the
economy since there are more people being productive and supporting it. The CDC
estimates that in the last 20 years there has been nearly $1.4 trillion in
savings in societal costs which include preventing lost productivity due to
disabilities and early death. In addition, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School
of Public Health claims that $63 billion dollars could be saved by providing
vaccinations to the world’s poorest countries. Money is often the greatest
obstacle in these situations. The first and last question asked is usually, “is
this a financially feasible option?” But in the case of vaccines, mandating
them would support the economy and would help save billions of dollars.
The administration of vaccines should be mandated as it
has been proven to be both medically and economically beneficial in the long
and short term. Vaccines are a preventive measure instead of a reactive one.
They help protect against diseases before they even appear in the body and over
time limit the appearance of such ailments until they eventually disappear.
Furthermore, administering vaccines could help save billions of dollars as well
as remove stress from patients, families, and researchers. Although some people
are skeptical of the effectiveness of vaccines, they have decreased the number
of child deaths as well as the number of deadly diseases prevalent in society
today by a drastic amount. The government should not cater toward these
skeptics who don’t believe the facts in front them. It is the responsibility of
the government to look after the entire community, not just consider the needs
of an individual. As such, it is imperative that the government mandates
vaccinations in order to promote a safe and healthy environment for the entire
population. There is no need to regress to times without technology when the
ability to save millions of lives is available.
Works
Cited
"Annual Measles Vaccination Rate, 1991–2013." Tribune Content Agency Photos, 2015. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/DOFPLX938787112/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&xid= 5f93214. Accessed 2
Oct. 2017.
"AMA
Encourages Community-Clinical Partnerships to Increase Use of Preventative Health Services among Boomers," American Medical Association, www.ama-assn.org,
Nov. 19, 2009
"Smallpox Disease Overview," CDC,
www.cdc.gov, Dec. 30, 2004
“Measles (Rubeola).” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, 20
Sept. 2017, www.cdc.gov/measles/cases-outbreaks.html. Accessed 3 Oct. 2017.
"The Benefits of Vaccination Outweigh the Risks." Vaccines, edited by Noël Merino, Greenhaven Press,2015. At Issue. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/EJ3010938204/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&xid=ce667 Accessed 2 Oct. 2017.
Originally published as "General Vaccine Safety Concerns," Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention [CDC], Apr. 2013.
"US Views on Childhood Vaccination Requirements by Demographics,
2015." Tribune Content Agency Photos,
2015. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/QTKGOK802161133/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&xid= 9f189a0.Accessed 2
Oct. 2017
"Vaccines." Opposing Viewpoints Online
Collection, Gale, 2016. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/PC3010999291/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&xid=fc099
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