Recently, New York City has mandate measles vaccination in for children less than 18. The law has triggered a lawsuit from the parents in the city. Five parents have filed a lawsuit against the health department of New York complaining that the city is overstepping the authority. According to the claim by parents, the order for mandatory measles vaccination is affecting the religious exemptions of their children. It is considered as a sort of violation of their religious sentiments. The parents also claimed that the mandatory vaccination order had put the kids at risk.
According to the lawsuit, the order has ignored the health risk of the vaccine causing harm to the general public. The rule only overstates the benefits of the MMR vaccine for general health. The lawsuit wants the supreme court of New York should issue a restraining on the health department temporarily. The parents claimed, the health department is only overblowing the situation of the outbreak of measles. The mandatory vaccination order is wholly disproportionate and unnecessary. There were less than 250 active cases of measles, and it is not an epidemic. So the compulsory vaccination order is not justified in this case, says the lawsuit.
On the other hand, the center for disease control and Prevention (CDC) says, the MMR vaccine is 97% effective in preventing the measles virus. It is safer to get the vaccine for MMR than getting mumps, measles, and rubella. The health department of the city claims, the outbreak of measles this time is the largest since 1991. On Monday, The number of cases of measles has raised to 329. The number is expected to rise in the next 3-5 weeks.
The anti-vaccination literature has spread through the Jewish community, made the children deprive of vaccination. According to the orthodox Jewish community, the vaccine causes autism in children. Many children in the neighborhood are affected by the measles virus in the city. So the schools are ordered to suspend the unvaccinated students from attending the classes. New York City health commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot has issued the order of compulsory vaccination in four areas of Brooklyn and Williamsburg. The violators of the law will be fined 1000 dollars, according to the Oder. The order was issued last week only to prevent the spared of the measles virus in those areas.
The lawsuit by the parents is claiming that the vaccine is not safe and the statement of the health department, the vaccine is effective and safe is misleading the public. The vaccine has many dangerous effects associated with it, says the lawsuit.
The health department is attempting to prevent the measles outbreak in the city by issuing the order. The measles virus is spreading across the city since October, and the number of active measles case is rising day by day. The victims of the dangerous virus are mostly children under 18. So the parents are advised to get their children vaccinated soon. The order to mandate the measles vaccination is aimed to prevent the outbreak of measles in the city.