Getting a medical exemption for vaccines isn’t controversial.
Or at least it shouldn’t be.
Why Should Medical Exemptions Be Based on CDC Contraindications?
As many people know though, some people have been taking advantage of the fact that medical exemptions weren’t clearly defined in California’s vaccine law.
Are there just a few doctors taking advantage of the California law?
“But at 105 schools in the state, 10% or more of kindergartners had a medical exemption in the school year that ended last month, according to a Los Angeles Times analysis of state data.”
Pushback against immunization laws leaves some California schools vulnerable to outbreaks
Is 10% a lot?
In one recent report, Vaccination Coverage for Selected Vaccines, Exemption Rates, and Provisional Enrollment Among Children in Kindergarten — United States, 2016–17 School Year, the median rate of medical exemptions in the US was just 0.2%, with a range of <0.1 to 1.5%.
In West Virginia and Mississippi, states that don’t allow non-medical exemptions and where criteria for medical exemptions are fairly strict, the rates were 0.1 and 0.3% respectively.
And that’s about what you would expect, as there are very few true contraindications or precautions to getting vaccinated.
So yes, 10% is an awful lot and that’s a good sign that it is more than just a few doctors taking advantage of the law.
“If a child has a medical exemption to immunization, a physician licensed to practice medicine in New York State must certify that the immunization is detrimental to the child’s health. The medical exemption should specify which immunization is detrimental to the child’s health, provide information as to why the immunization is contraindicated based on current accepted medical practice, and specify the length of time the immunization is medically contraindicated, if known.”
Dear Colleague letter regarding guidelines for use of immunization exemptions
Why do most other states have so few medical exemptions?
Mostly because there are very few true medical reasons to skip or delay a child’s vaccines!
They include, but aren’t limited to, the contraindications and precautions listed in the package insert for each vaccine (the contraindications and warnings sections…) and by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
They don’t include many other things that are “incorrectly perceived as contraindications to vaccination,” such as things in the family medical history of the child, eczema (unless they are getting the smallpox vaccine), colic, sleep apnea, or being a picky eater.
It should be obvious.
Medical exemptions for vaccines should be based on CDC criteria because some folks think that everything is a vaccine injury.
More on Medical Exemptions
- Vaccine medical exemptions – California legislature aims to curb abuse
- Dr. Richard Pan Introduces SB 276 to Combat Fake Medical Exemptions that Put Children and Communities at Risk
- Can California Stop Anti-Vaxxers by Going After Their Doctors?
- VAXOPEDIA – How Is California’s New Vaccine Law Working?
- VAXOPEDIA – Do Vaccine Mandates Force Parents to Vaccinate Their Kids?
- VAXOPEDIA – How to Claim a Vaccine Exemption
- VAXOPEDIA – The History of Vaccine Exemptions
- VAXOPEDIA – A Legislative Guide to Advocating for Stronger Vaccine Laws
- VAXOPEDIA – Abuse of Vaccine Exemptions
- VAXOPEDIA – Do Vaccines Cause Strabismus?
- VAXOPEDIA – Is a Family History of Altered Immunocompetence a Contraindication to Getting Vaccinated?
- VAXOPEDIA – Is a Crooked Face a Sign of a Vaccine Injury?
- VAXOPEDIA – Do Vaccines Cause Acute Flaccid Myelitis?
- VAXOPEDIA – Do Vaccines Cause Bell’s Palsy?
- VAXOPEDIA – Is Ocular Palsy a Vaccine Injury?
- VAXOPEDIA – Do Vaccines Cause HSP?
- VAXOPEDIA – Do Vaccines Cause Tics or Tourette Syndrome?
- VAXOPEDIA – Do Vaccines Cause PANDAS?
- VAXOPEDIA – Can Vaccines Cause Kawasaki Disease?
- VAXOPEDIA – Anti-Vaccine Points Refuted A Thousand Times
- CDC – Vaccination Coverage for Selected Vaccines, Exemption Rates, and Provisional Enrollment Among Children in Kindergarten — United States, 2016–17 School Year
- Dear Colleague letter regarding guidelines for use of immunization exemptions
- ACIP – Contraindications and Precautions
- CDC – Who Should NOT Get Vaccinated with these Vaccines
Last Updated on April 18, 2019