HOUSTON — An increasing number of Texans are choosing not to get themselves or their kids vaccinated, including several clusters of people in Greater Houston and the consequences could be deadly.
That’s according to The Immunization Partnership’s latest bi-annual report.
“It’s alarming when I see so many parents choose not to protect their children because it puts their own family at risk,” said Allison Winnike, President and CEO of The Immunization Partnership.
The Immunization Partnership is a Houston based non-profit on a mission to “eradicate vaccine-preventable diseases by educating the community, advocating for evidence-based public policy and supporting immunization best practices,” according to its mission statement.
The latest report states non-medical exemptions for school vaccines in Texas are 25 times higher now than in 2003, which Winnike finds very concerning.
“They have saved millions and millions of lives and even countless more from debilitating diseases," Winnike said.
A 2014 report by the Centers for Disease Control states that over a 20-year period, vaccines will prevent 322 million illnesses and 732,000 deaths.
The anti-vaccine movement is traced back to 1998 when Andrew Wakefield published a fraudulent research paper claiming that there was a link between the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism.
Wakefield has since been stripped of his medical license for unethical behavior, misconduct and fraud.
“That misinformation got out of the bag,” Winnike said. “So it’s been repeated on social media and on the internet.”
“The (anti-vaccine) numbers are increasing at an exponential rate, and that’s a problem. In just the past seven years, the non-medical exemption rates in Montgomery County and Galveston County have gone up 83 percent. And in Chambers County, it’s gone up over 100 percent,” Winnike said.
The medical community is already seeing some of the side effects. Winnike points to the return of measles which was considered eradicated in the US back in 2000, however, in 2018 there were eight reported cases in Texas.
“Vaccines are really a victim of their own success. They’ve been so good at eliminating diseases that we don’t see it every day.”
The report states more than 57,000 Texans chose not to vaccinate themselves or their kids since 2016, many of whom live in affluent areas. Although the reason for that is not known, Winnike explains one theory is these parents have more time to do their own research and come to their own, incorrect conclusions.
The view the full report, tap/click here.