Judge Upholds NYC Order Requiring Measles Vaccinations

Miguel Moreno
By Miguel Moreno
April 20, 2019US News
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A Brooklyn judge upheld New York City’s emergency order requiring people in Kings County to get the measles vaccine. The final ruling was made on April 18, dismissing the claims of five parents who believe that their religious rights are infringed by the order.

Mayor de Blasio announced the emergency order earlier this month, igniting a fire in religious practitioners, such as Orthodox Jews, who oppose vaccines. Residents now face $1,000 dollar fines and schools have been shut down for admitting unvaccinated children.

mumps and rubella vaccine
File photo, shows a measles, mumps and rubella vaccine on a countertop at a pediatrics clinic in Greenbrae, Calif. (Eric Risberg/AP)

“A fireman need not obtain the informed consent of the owner before extinguishing a house fire,” stated the Honorable Lawrence Knipel in a court document. “Vaccination is known to extinguish the fire of contagion.”

Knipel said that there was insufficient evidence to prove that the vaccination of children violated their religious belief—as they had no affidavit of a religious official. As for their claim that the Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) vaccine is ineffective and is itself a danger: also insufficient evidence.

Schools Make the Switch

The group most afflicted by the disease are children from the Orthodox Jewish community. According to the city, the outbreak began when an unvaccinated child contracted the disease on a trip to Israel, contaminating Brooklyn at their return.

However, some Jewish private schools have admitted students who were not vaccinated. In one yeshiva, forty cases were reported, but the city has both issued closure orders and shut down uncooperative schools.

A sign warns people of measles in NYC.
A sign warns people of measles in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in Williamsburg on April 10, 2019 in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Gary Schlesinger, CEO of ParCar—community health network—has been working with the Jewish community to dispel what he calls misinformation about vaccines.

“We see a big difference now,” said the Schlesinger. “A lot of these sideline parents—the undecided parents—are actually vaccinating now.”

He is assured that after passover holiday, which ends on April 27, no schools will accept unvaccinated children. According to his estimates, about 1,000 children remain unvaccinated in the neighborhood of Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), two doses of MMR vaccine are around 97 percent effective at preventing measles, while one dose is about 93 percent effective. Possible side effects include fever, rash, temporary pain and stiffness in the joints, or other conditions.

“As with any medicine, there is a very remote chance of a vaccine causing a serious injury or death,” states the CDC.

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