The Vaccination Police: Would Americans Give Up Their Liberty for More Health Care?

Early in my career, I practiced law with attorneys who handled the occasional medical malpractice case.  The  experience was gorier than a Stephen King novel.  I noticed that despite the fact that health care is rarely without risk, people seem to approach the world of health care as if it is a kind of temple of Science, a place where the mystical and all-powerful gods of science and technology would shelter and comfort… unless some hapless M.D. is negligent.

It was almost unacceptably rude to talk about the gaping holes in contemporary understanding of the human body and mind.  Some say good doctors leeched George Washington to death, but the idea that the cutting edge in today’s health care could be similarly dull and imperfect is unthinkable to many.  The more recent past has presented us with minds destroyed or deranged by lobotomy operations and faces disfigured by state-of-the-art cosmetic surgeries.  Nevertheless, too often people see health care today as an unquestionable good, not a necessary risk.  There is simply no modern cure for idolatry of High Science.

It is within that context that we read CNSNews.com’s report that the draft health care bill authorizes and funds the creation of state programs for ‘vaccine teams’ to conduct “interventions” in private homes.  The language is dangerously vague and the scenario about as realistic as a science fiction B-Movie… or is it?  It reminds us of the army of social service workers sent to monitor young mothers in the UK.  We understand that Americans still value liberty.  Would they sacrifice it in favor of the value of health care?  Would they approve vaccine “interventions” in their neighbor’s lives out of respect for High Science?  I don’t know, but here’s what the official summary of the draft bill says:

“Authorizes a demonstration program to improve immunization coverage. Under this program, CDC will provide grants to states to improve immunization coverage of children, adolescents, and adults through the use of evidence-based interventions. States may use funds to implement interventions that are recommended by the Community Preventive Services Task Force, such as reminders or recalls for patients or providers, or home visits.”

We understand that those who abide by certain religious beliefs resist efforts to administer vaccines to children. We can defend this on libertarian grounds, but it often strikes us as tragic because many vaccines are routine, exceedingly safe, and save lives. We can understand even if we don’t agree with the intolerance that could have motivated the Left to include this in the draft bill. On the other hand, some vaccines are still controversial and we aren’t ready to force them on anyone. In a culture where High Science reigns king, it seems bizarre to send an army of health services workers into people’s homes to convince them that choosing certain vaccinations is necessary for their children’s health and safety. We understand the power of scientific authority, but we also have lived long enough to have seen that it can be fickle and often wrong. Surely, the developers of controversial vaccines don’t need government agents to peddle their goods when they already have modern medicine’s stamp of approval.

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