Document text
0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW SOU's Academia Latina program helps incoming high schoolers learning to lead ... Ashland Calendar, Saturday, Aug. 8 ... Herb Rothschild Jr.: Affirmative actions ... SOU's Academia Latina program helps incoming high schoolers learning to lead ... Ashland Calendar, Saturday, Aug. 8 ... Herb Rothschild Jr.: Affirmative actions ... LOCAL TAKE Do you think vaccinations should be mandatory? Comment By John Darling for the Tidings DailyTidings.com By John Darling for the Tidings Posted Dec. 22, 2014 at 12:01 AM By John Darling for the Tidings Posted Dec. 22, 2014 at 12:01 AM » RELATED CONTENT Schools, county issue warning --> Ashland Public Schools and the Jackson County Health Department issued a joint release on Friday, reminding people of the local outbreak of chicken pox and pertussis and encouraging them to get imm... » Read more X Schools, county issue warning Ashland Public Schools and the Jackson County Health Department issued a joint release on Friday, reminding people of the local outbreak of chicken pox and pertussis and encouraging them to get immunized if they are not already. The Health Department will offer a special immunization clinic in Ashland from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday at Asante Ashland Community Hospital, Conference Room 1. To determine fees based on insurance or state-sponsored vaccine availability, call the Health Department Monday at 541-774-8209. The release noted that low vaccination rates can be particularly threatening to people suffering from serious diseases, such as cancer or HIV/AIDS, or those with suppressed immune systems. Pregnant women, infants or people who have undergone chemotherapy or radiation treatments are also at heightened risk. People with chicken pox remain contagious from four days prior to symptoms showing until the last pox has crusted over, usually five to seven days after onset. Anyone who is sick with pertussis (whooping cough) should stay out of public spaces for 21 days after the onset of the cough or until they have completed five days of antibiotic treatments. For additional information, see www.ashlandchild.org .   • Have we recovered from the Great Recession? • What do you think of the proposed natural gas pipeline? • Are you glad the Ashland Rotary Centennial Ice Rink is here? • College debt load balloons: What could, should be done? • Keeping a close eye on chickenpox • Resolutions for 2015 » Social News Cases of chicken pox and whooping cough have recently ticked upward, especially in schools such as Ashland with lower percentages of parents who vaccinate their children, according to Jackson County health officials. They’ve been notified of four cases of whooping cough (pertussis) and 15 cases of chicken pox, both highly contagious — and dangerous to more vulnerable populations, such as the elderly, infants, pregnant women and those already compromised by illness. Even more worrisome: Ashland educators said last week they had seen 20 cases of chicken pox, 16 of them at Willow Wind Community Learning. Ashland schools report about 70 percent of students were vaccinated in 2013, while 95 and 98 percent of students were vaccinated in Medford and Eagle Point, respectively. The Ashland School District reported Friday that it had canceled two events at Willow Wind and it was warning people in higher-risk categories to drop their children off at a designated spot near that school rather than enter the campus. Immunizations are also being offered to staff members. Such reports fuel the fires of controversy, with some saying vaccines are harmful and children need to react naturally to pathogens and build their immunity — and others saying vaccines work to prevent disease and contagion, and should therefore be required in schools. As soon as vaccines came into use, around 1800, religious objections arose, based on the supposed need not to thwart the will of God about who should be sick or die. The cycle of compulsion-opposition-repeal persisted through the 19th century until the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1905 that the public good overrode personal freedom. The Centers for Disease Control reported in 2013 that the three biggest outbreaks of measles that year were in groups of people in New York, North Carolina and Texas who were unvaccinated because of philosophical or religious objections. This was the most since the disease was considered eliminated in the U.S. in 2000. Full vaccination of children is estimated to save 33,000 lives in the U.S. However, the debate — and legislation — rages back and forth down through the decades, with no resolution in sight. Do the outbreaks of chicken pox and whooping cough in the area have you rethinking whether children should be immunized? Rick Sparks:  I just took a course on Bio-Ethical Dilemmas at OLLI and the teacher, an ex-lawyer, had worked on such issues with hospitals. We tried to come up with the right thing to do about vaccinations, in our class, and it was extremely difficult. Personally, I feel if you home school, then fine, it’s your choice, but your children are still going to have an effect on others. If they interface with other kids, vaccination should be required. It’s a very difficult question. The other side is about individual freedom and not forcing people to do things they don’t believe in. Anna Humphrey: I work as a dula at the hospital here. People have gotten into a really heated debate about this and this dissonance it has created is almost as poisonous as the disease itself. People shouldn’t have to feel shame and guilt either way, in vaccinating or refusing to. It’s really tearing our community apart. You can see it on Ashland Peeps and Mama’s Medicine Wheel. My opinion is I support what individuals choose to do. Myself, when I was 6 months old, I had a MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine and almost died of a seizure. Sandia Sharkey: Personally, I used to be against vaccinations. I had a friend in Mendocino whose baby died at nine months from a vaccine for whooping cough. Now, I’m not sure it should be required. People should really think twice when they decide not to vaccinate. They should think about the world around them and the people they could be endangering. Janey Langley: Vaccines have gotten a bad rap at some point in the past. Yes, we want to control what goes into vaccines and we also want to protect vulnerable populations by using vaccines. If I had children, I would vaccinate them. The information that has gotten to the forefront, about vaccines possibly causing autism and such stories like that, I would have been petrified to vaccinate them.   By John Darling for the Tidings DailyTidings.com By John Darling for the Tidings Posted Dec. 22, 2014 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... Business Name address Location, ST | website.com Find Southern Oregon Attractions Bars Restaurants Beauty Salons Entertainment Doctors Medical Specialists Contractors Education Lawn Services Lawyers Shopping Travel Tanning Used Cars Wedding Services ▼ Add your business here + Events Calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. DailyTidings.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501