According to the Pew Research Center’s study made public on Thursday, February 2nd, most Americans disagree with the criticism of MMR vaccine voiced by the President as well as several other public figures. The majority overwhelmingly support health experts’ recommendations for public school children to receive the vaccine against mumps, measles, and rubella.
Study’s Findings
Per researchers’ latest findings, almost 82 percent of all Americans support the MMR vaccine for their children attending public schools. Furthermore, the study reveals that these people’s perception of the health benefits of the MMR vaccine is strongly positive. Hence, roughly 88 percent of U.S. citizens believe the vaccine’s benefits outweigh any potential risks associated with it. Moreover, nearly 73 percent of Americans associate the vaccine with high preventive benefits, while 66 percent believe there are low risks of side effects.
The team of researchers conducted the study before the presidential election in November and comes at a time when government experts, medical, and scientific organizations rang the bell about the President’s embrace of discredited claims in relation to the MMR vaccine’s safety.
President Donald Trump’s Views
Recently, the President announced he considered the option of establishing a vaccine commission. However, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention already has such a commission in place, more specifically, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, that focuses on all aspects of vaccine safety and follows scientifically rigorous processes to evaluate these aspects.
Donald Trump’s stance on the MMR vaccine comes as no surprise. Early in his presidential campaign, he met with multiple personalities also skeptical on the vaccine’s health benefits, including Andrew Wakefield, the discredited British ex-physician. He is the one that launched the modern antivaccine movement that came as a result of his paper published on the side effects of the shot that linked the MMR vaccine with increased risk of autism. However, the paper was fully discredited and labeled as fraudulent.
Unfortunately, public concerns persist in spite of a robust collection of medical papers disproving such claims. Experts believe many are influenced by public figures, conspiracy theorists, and celebrities. Up until this point, there is no valid scientific research that links the MMR vaccine to autism or any other mental or life-threatening disorder.
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