essay on student should get vaccinated to attend school in 1000 words
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Explanation:
STUDENT ESSAY:
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the UK Government passed the Coronavirus Act 2020 (CA), which implemented a number of emergency powers, allowing public officials to take action in specific situations in order to contain and slow down the spread of the virus as well as ease the burden on frontline staff.[1] Examples of these emergency powers include: the capability for public officials to test, isolate, and detain a person where they have reasonable grounds to think that the person is infected; restrict or prohibit gatherings or events; and require the temporary closure of a school or registered childcare provider.[2]
In its efforts to support the public health benefit, the CA has arguably led to interference with individuals’ right to liberty under Article 5(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).[3] Pugh’s 2020 article on the CA discusses how individuals may be deprived of their liberty to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, if that deprivation is “necessary and proportionate” and is in accordance with a procedure prescribed by law.[4] Pugh refers to this as “the public health exception”.[5] The importance of this approach directly relates to the consideration of a compulsory COVID-19 vaccine, specifically whether limitations on specific rights can be justified.
This essay analyzes whether a compulsory COVID-19 vaccine would be a violation of human rights law in the UK. For a comprehensive understanding of the implications of this topic, I provide background information and discuss perspectives regarding compulsory vaccinations in general. This discussion is followed by an outline of the specific rights under the ECHR that may be affected if a compulsory vaccination was to be implemented in the UK. I then discuss various interpretations of the elements required for state interference upon these rights and expand on them in regard to their application to compulsory vaccination. Through this analysis, it is concluded that a compulsory COVID-19 vaccination would not be a violation of human rights in the UK if the government sets out explicit parameters whereby a compulsory vaccination would be “necessary and proportionate” in the interests of health and safety, and if it was to ensure that the state is fulfilling its positive obligation to protect the right to life.[6]
Background on vaccinations and vaccine hesitancy
The topic of vaccination has been vastly studied across the world, affirming that high rates of vaccination coverage in childhood are important in preventing infectious diseases and contributing to a decline in mortality.[7] Despite the fact that vaccinations have proven to decrease rates of common childhood diseases and in some cases result in the complete termination of diseases, there is a rising trend of parents refusing to vaccinate their children.[8] This trend is commonly referred to as the anti-vaccination movement or Anti-Vaxx. The basis for these views revolves around arguments that vaccinations cause sickness, use unethical practices, and overall hold a lot of uncertainty, which causes hesitancy.[9] In addition, wide use of social media has allowed the Anti-Vaxx trend to become more widespread, and in a number of cases has led to vaccination rates dropping below the levels needed for herd immunity. Herd immunity occurs when a high enough percentage of the population is vaccinated that there are then too few people available to become hosts, so transmission of the disease or virus stops.[10] One of the most important characteristics of herd immunity is that it not only protects those who receive vaccination, but helps to protect individuals who are not vaccinated for whatever reason.[11]
Looking further into vaccine hesitancy, Kestenbaum and Feester identified some of the common factors contributing to this trend, including knowledge and information sources, experience or lack of experience with vaccine-preventable diseases, the role of recommendations by health professionals, social norms, and parental responsibility, trust, and religious beliefs.[12] They found many factors contribute to this trend, with uncertainty and the rapid transfer of information leading to the refusal of vaccination by families and individuals. The rise in the Anti-Vaxx movement has been shown to significantly impair health protection. A number of studies found that from 2006-2011, decreases in MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccination rates in the UK, Ireland, France, Italy, and the United States, had a direct correlation with measles outbreaks in those areas.[13] In response to these changes, both Italy and France passed legislation that made specific vaccinations, including MMR, compulsory for children.