TY - JOUR
T1 - In the Wake of a Pandemic
T2 - Revisiting School Approaches to Nonmedical Exemptions to Mandatory Vaccination in the US
AU - Paquette, Erin Talati
N1 - Funding Information:
E.P. discloses funding under NIH NICHD 1K23HD098289-01A1, the Pediatric Critical Care and Trauma Scientist Development Program , the American Bar Foundation /APB Access to Justice Scholars Program, and HRSA UH1HP29963. The author declares no conflicts of interest.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Elsevier Inc.
PY - 2021/4
Y1 - 2021/4
N2 - Mandatory school vaccination policies with exclusion of unvaccinated students can be a powerful tool in ensuring high vaccination rates. Some parents may object to mandatory vaccination policies, claiming exemptions based on medical, religious, or philosophical reasons. Individual schools, school systems, or local or regional governments have different policies with respect to whether, and what kind of, exemptions may be allowed. In the setting of the current pandemic, questions regarding the acceptability of exemptions have resurfaced, as schools and local governments struggle with how to safely return children to school. Anticipating that school attendance will be facilitated by the development of a vaccine, school systems will face decisions about whether to mandate vaccination and whether to permit exemptions. The American Academy of Pediatrics promulgates policy favoring the elimination of nonmedical exemptions generally in schools. This discussion considers whether schools should eliminate nonmedical exemptions to vaccination as proposed in the American Academy of Pediatrics policy, ultimately concluding that broad elimination of exemptions is not justified and advocating a more nuanced approach that encourages school attendance while promoting vaccination and broader public health goals.
AB - Mandatory school vaccination policies with exclusion of unvaccinated students can be a powerful tool in ensuring high vaccination rates. Some parents may object to mandatory vaccination policies, claiming exemptions based on medical, religious, or philosophical reasons. Individual schools, school systems, or local or regional governments have different policies with respect to whether, and what kind of, exemptions may be allowed. In the setting of the current pandemic, questions regarding the acceptability of exemptions have resurfaced, as schools and local governments struggle with how to safely return children to school. Anticipating that school attendance will be facilitated by the development of a vaccine, school systems will face decisions about whether to mandate vaccination and whether to permit exemptions. The American Academy of Pediatrics promulgates policy favoring the elimination of nonmedical exemptions generally in schools. This discussion considers whether schools should eliminate nonmedical exemptions to vaccination as proposed in the American Academy of Pediatrics policy, ultimately concluding that broad elimination of exemptions is not justified and advocating a more nuanced approach that encourages school attendance while promoting vaccination and broader public health goals.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jpeds.2021.01.022
DO - 10.1016/j.jpeds.2021.01.022
M3 - Article
C2 - 33484695
AN - SCOPUS:85102798298
VL - 231
SP - 17
EP - 23
JO - Journal of Pediatrics
JF - Journal of Pediatrics
SN - 0022-3476
ER -