Lower Child Mortality Rates with Free Vaccinations

Jessica Burnett

Problem and Benefit• According to the World Health Organization in 2012, 58% of the global child

mortality rate for children under 5 is due to infectious diseases. Many of these diseases can be prevented by vaccines, such as Measles. In 2007, worldwide coverage of the first dose of measles vaccine reached 82%; between 2000 and 2007, the estimated number of deaths from measles dropped from 750 000 to 197 000 (“World Health Organization”)

Statement• If the Government and medical providers provided free immunizations for Children

more children would get immunized and less children would die from infectious diseases.

(“Changes in Pertussis reporting by State from 2011 to 2012”).

Relative locations of pertussis space-time clusters and personal beliefs exemption (PBE) clusters from2005–2006 to 2009–2010. The inset in the top right corner shows the relative locations of pertussisspace-time clusters and PBE spatial clusters in San Diego County. (“Pediatrics”).

Project Description• The CDC currently has a program called the Vaccine for Children Project.

This project is aimed at giving children who would not get immunized due to not being able to afford it, free immunizations.(“Vaccines for Children Program (VFC)”). I would like to take this a step forward and provide free vaccinations to anyone who would like them, regardless of finances.

• This would mean government health care and individual health providers would receive either discounted or free vaccines to give to patients. The incentive to do this would be tax exemptions to both the patient and the provider. The provider would get tax deductions for every free immunization administered and every child who is fully up to date on their vaccinations then would also receive a tax exemption. If they child is not able to get immunized for medical reasons they too will be exempt but for children that have non-medical exemption they would not receive any immunized child deduction.

Conclusion

• Offering tax incentives and free immunizations would encourage more parents to get their children vaccinated and with that the child mortality rate due to preventable infectious diseases would lower.

Works Cited

"Nonmedical Vaccine Exeptions and Pertussis in California, 2010." Pediatrics. 132.4 (2013): n. page. Web. 14 Oct. 2013. <http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/132/4/624>.

"Measles global annual reported cases and MCV coverage." World Health Organization (2013): n.pag. WHO/IVB database. Database. 14 Oct 2013.

<http://www.who.int/immunization_monitoring/diseases/big_Measles_global_coverage.JPG>.

United States. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Changes in Pertussis reporting by State from 2011 to 2012. 2013. Web. <http://www.cdc.gov/pertussis/images/pertussis-graph-2012-

lg.gif>.

United States. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Vaccines for Children Program (VFC). 2013. Print. <http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/programs/vfc/index.html>.

"Weekly epidemiological record: Measles vaccines." World Health Organization. 84.35 (2009): n. page. Web. 14 Oct. 2013. <http://www.who.int/wer/2009/wer8435.pdf>.