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News

Sixty seconds on . . . mandatory vaccination

BMJ 2019; 365 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.l2258 (Published 17 May 2019) Cite this as: BMJ 2019;365:l2258

Opinion

We should consider compulsory vaccination

  1. Nigel Hawkes
  1. London, UK

That’s a perilous path to follow, isn’t it?

So the UK has long believed. Respect for individual autonomy and the need for informed consent have always trumped compulsion in British vaccination policy.

And it’s worked, hasn’t it?

Yes. Fewer than 2% of parents refuse all vaccinations.

So why change?

A new analysis by an Italian team warns that unless stronger action is taken to increase the rate of measles vaccination, the susceptible fraction of …

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