This was the first document on vaccines that I had ever created. I spent a great deal of time building up to drafting this HCP, and it ended up being much longer than most peoples' just because of the amount of detail. I used a lot of what is already included in the prospectus and built my full-length drafts off of it, which is why they all share many similarities between them. However, I was missing a lot of key components, like opposition and counter arguments, and certain experts that could help establish each side of the vaccination debate. You can see how I address some of these issues in my next draft.

                                                                         HCP Prospectus

            On June 30^th, 2015, Governor Jerry Brown signed into law Senate Bill 277, mandating that all school-aged children are required to be vaccinated before starting public school, private school, or daycare. This bill has caused outrage among many Californian parents, who previous to this bill have objected and abstained from vaccinating their children on the grounds of personal or religious belief exemptions. The goal of this bill is to vaccinate as many children and young adults attending public and private schools, to prevent the spread of preventable diseases.

This is not only a free speech issue, as this bill strips California parents of their rights to oppose vaccinating their children, but it is also a public health issue, which is what makes this topic such a heated debate. Currently, the law is meant to go into effect in July of 2016, and as “Anti-Vaxxers” struggle to fight for the repeal of this law, they also have until December 31^st of this year to utilize the “grandfathered” personal belief exemptions to avoid vaccinating their children. However, this issue doesn’t only affect the people arguing over whether vaccinations are good or not, it affects the children that it’s required of. Those that are not vaccinated by the next “checkpoint” in July 2016, can and will be excluded from school until they have been proven to be vaccinated, or their parents have provided the necessary and appropriate medical exemption paperwork.

This new legislation came up after an outbreak of measles occurred in Disneyland, earlier this year. The disease ran rampant through the amusement park, affecting a total of 147 people across 6 states and even more people in Mexico and Canada were infected. Although there were no deaths, this is what re-sparked a national debate about vaccines, and who has the right to be exempt from them. Many of those affected in Disneyland were due to personal belief exemptions, and others were simply too young to receive the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccines (NBC News). The point of this being that these diseases can spread like wildfire, and with too many personal belief exemptions, the effectiveness of herd immunity begins to diminish.. This outbreak was a wake-up call for a lot of people in California, and is the reason behind the urgency of signing this law into action. We cannot have an outbreak of preventable diseases occurring in and spreading throughout our country and our neighbors; not when medical research has made it possible that these diseases be left in the past.

Both California legislators and doctors and scientists around California have spoken out in support for these vaccine requirements. One of the most hotly debated vaccines to be included on the list is the HPV vaccine for women ranging in age from 9-26. This vaccine is most effective when administered before sexual activity begins, and helps prevent the spread of the most prominent 4 strains of HPV out of 15 total. This virus is linked closely to cervical cancer in young women, as well as throat cancer and anal cancer in both sexes. Many have advocated for the HPV vaccine to be included in the mandatory school vaccinations. Although this has not yet happened in California, the two opposing sides continue to clash over whether this should be mandated. Dr. Michael Bookman, medical director of US Gynecologic Oncology Research Program, sees the vaccine, along with many others, as a necessary preemptive strike against childhood diseases and more specifically the spread of HPV. However, the advocacy for this particular vaccine comes at a price, as Dr. Bookman has been ridiculed and opposed by conservative groups that are concerned that the HPV vaccine, like contraception, will only encourage sex among youths. This vaccine, unlike others, allow some parents to opt out of their children receiving this vaccine. With regards to the other 10 mandated immunizations in California, those that are most opposed to the requirement tend to be white, middle class families who are skeptical of vaccines, and think that there is no risk for their child, due to herd immunity. Dr. Robert Frenck Jr., professor of pediatrics at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, and sits on the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on infectious diseases, states that people now are even more at risk because the disease is not as common as it used to be, and is therefore likely to be mistaken for something less serious. “Vaccines have been so effective that people now don't even know what the disease looks like or what problems the diseases can cause,” Frenck states, "[People] don't perceive risk from the disease. They don't perceive the benefits of the vaccine." (CNN).

One researcher, Jason Glanz, an epidemiologist from Colorado is working to educate parents about the safety and reservations of immunizations. He originally started studying the rare side effects of administered vaccines, and found that along with a decrease of disease and negative side effects, came a decrease of belief in vaccines, resulting in more hesitancy from the parents. His goal is to reach out and educate both parents and experts alike, so that a more common ground may be taken in order to discuss the pros and cons, skepticisms and issues surrounding the debate. Although there are still people who are adamant about their “Anti-vaxxer” opinions, and many have publicly opposed the law in California. One prominent voice being heard in a sea of outcries is Chris Thompson, President of Fullerton School District. His quote is featured on the anti-vaccination homepage where he states, “For no reason other than freedom, without prejudice on the pros and cons of various vaccinations both individually and on a broader statistical basis, no citizen should be made to get an injection of anything at the point of a gun. I absolutely oppose this legislation.” In addition to Mr. Thompson, one of the most prominent anti-vaccine advocates is Jenny Mccarthy, a playboy model turned TV personality that has become the face of the “Anti-vax” movement. She claims that her son’s autism was caused by the vaccines he received when he was two years old (this has widely been disproven). She has been fighting not for “no vaccinations,” but instead for “safe vaccinations,” which is a little vague considering all vaccinations have been proven to be safe and effective, otherwise they wouldn’t be given to children.

Not everyone, supposedly wants to completely exempt their children from vaccines, many just want the choice to pick and choose which vaccines their children receive and when. According to many, this law puts a restriction on parental rights, and on freedom. It can be compared to Roe v Wade, the SCOTUS case that gave women across the US the right to an abortion. The same principles can be applied here: it is one’s own choice what to do with their own body, and the state should not be able to forbid or enforce something that people view as a personal choice. However, in the 1905 case of Jacobson v Massachusetts, the Supreme Court ruled that the states did in fact have the authority to enforce compulsory vaccination laws, under the pretense that the freedom of the individual is outweighed by the benefit for the general public. But this idea is contradicted by a quote from a SCOTUS case called Pierce v Society of Sisters, which states, “The child is not a mere creature of the state.” This is a popularly cited quote from the anti-vaccination movement which is trying to claim more parental rights and control over a child’s welfare.