Many people are confused about the laws regarding vaccination and its potential for harm. There is no law in Maryland requiring any child to be immunized.
The laws regarding immunization deal directly with truancy. Children are required to show proof of immunization in order to be registered to go to school. If a child cannot show proof of current vaccination he or she can't go to school. And if they don't go to school they can be found guilty of truancy and their parents will be liable.
That doesn't sound like much of a problem until you consider the number of children who don't go to public schools. Approximately 3 percent of children in Maryland are home-schooled, and their numbers are rising. And because none of these children go to public school, none of them are required to show proof of vaccination.
Yet these children attend school at home are the same children who participate in recreation sports, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, church groups, etc., where they come into contact with vaccinated children every day.
I have met many home-schooled children over the years who have never been vaccinated because their parents mistakenly believe that vaccination leads to autism. They don't believe in modern science and they don't trust the government.
There has to be another way to get through to these home-schooling parents who have no sense of community when it comes to public health. I don't know what the solution is, but I hope out scientists, educators and community leaders to figure it out because the number of unvaccinated home-schooled children continues to grow, increasing the threat of a major disease outbreak.
Lisa Nash, Lansdowne