There has been no religious exemption for mandatory childhood vaccinations in Mississippi since the law requiring them was passed in 1972. That has now changed due to a lawsuit filed last year by parents who have kept their children out of the state's public schools due to vaccination requirements. The lawsuit was funded by the Texas-based Informed Consent Action Network, one of the largest anti-vaccination groups in the country.
John Gaudet, a Hattiesburg-based pediatrician, fears that this new exemption might lead to the resurgence of deadly diseases that haven't been seen in Mississippi in decades.
“Diseases like polio and measles, they're not eradicated,” Gaudet said. “So the only way to keep them suppressed and keep those numbers really low, is to keep those vaccine rates high. And if we start really getting lax on that, then these diseases can begin to make a comeback.”
Measles was declared “eliminated” in the United States in 2000, but has seen a resurgence in recent years, largely in unvaccinated people and undervaccinated communities. In February, 85 children in Ohio were infected with measles. According to data from the city of Columbus, most of those infected were unvaccinated or only partially vaccinated.
For years, Mississippi has had one of the highest childhood vaccination rates for a variety of diseases due to the robust requirements. In a state with many of the worst health outcomes in the nation, this was a rare area of praise from public health officialsWhile the Mississippi Department of Health is complying with the court order, the agency and the state board of health have said they do not agree with the opinion of the court.
“Many vaccine preventable diseases are rare today as a result of vaccine efforts, while other vaccine preventable diseases have significantly reduced incidence rates, morbidity, and mortality,” the Mississippi State Board of Health said in a statement.
Now, there are only five states without religious exemptions for school vaccination requirements; California, Connecticut, Maine, New York and West Virginia.
To receive a religious exemption, a child's parent or guardian will have to schedule an appointment at their county health department and fill out the appropriate form, which the State Epidemiologist will review. They will also be required to watch a Vaccine Education Video during that appointment.
Dr. Gaudet says that the role of pediatricians in having difficult, but crucial, conversations about vaccines with guardians is more important than ever.
“It's a conversation that you have to have with each individual parent,” Gaudet said. “They all come with different concerns and different thoughts about the issue.”
