Mandating Vaccines: An Examination of Constitutional and Parental Rights, State Laws, Vaccines and Regulating Information

My thesis examines whether states have the right to mandate certain vaccinations for children entering public schools, based on the vaccine’s ability to prevent diseases. Recent studies show that there has been an increase of disease outbreaks such as measles and smallpox in communities that have lower rates of vaccination. Increasingly, parents are using exemptions based on medical, religious and philosophical beliefs to not vaccinate their child. An interdisciplinary approach was used to investigate these claims, using the studies of Law and Science. The Law discipline examines the rights of the parents versus the rights of the State. The Science discipline examines the history of vaccinations, outbreak statistics and the link between autism and vaccines. The fundamental problem that this paper explores is the rights granted to the parents by the U.S. Constitution versus the State’s duty to protect its citizens. My research uses the Supreme Court case of Jacobson vs. Massachusetts, which upheld the authority of states to mandate vaccinations establishing precedent. Once a case establishes precedent, it gives future cases authority to rule accordingly and this case was used to analyze the states’ right to intervene. The science behind vaccines was examined and the promotion by the World Health Organization (WHO), that criticized the claim that vaccines cause autism because of the lack of research. My research struggled to reach a consensus regarding the link between vaccines and autism. because of inconsistencies and lack of research. The integration chapter offers a possible remedy to the thesis involving regulating the propaganda and selective research regarding vaccines to help parents make an accurate and informed decision.