Deadly Virus Outbreak Hits 16 States With 2 Cases in California Now

In the 15th century, people intentionally exposed healthy family members to smallpox to try to prevent the spread. As understanding progressed, a milkmaid with cowpox helped forward science with Dr. Edward Jenner creating a successful smallpox vaccine.

What Vaccines Have Come After Smallpox?

Smallpox only exists in laboratories thanks to hard work across the globe to kill it forever. Vaccinations have come a long way since smallpox. There are vaccines for rabies, diphtheria, yellow fever, influenza, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, pneumococcal pneumonia, hepatitis B, varicella, and human papillomavirus. These are effective, but none have reached the success that the smallpox vaccine has.

As the option to bow out of vaccines has become a topic of debate, children being infected with once uncommon illnesses has risen. Schools have the most children concentrated in one place, so it is the best way to beat back the viral load and track how the state is doing to protect our progeny.

How Protected Are California Children From Infection?

The California Department of Public Health conducted an audit of children in kindergarten and 7th grade. While children in special education or who have a medical exemption are not required to have vaccinations, many schools in California are in jeopardy of losing funding due to unsafe vaccination rates.

The audit list, released by the California Department of Public Health, includes 450 schools serving kindergarten students and 176 schools serving seventh graders with low vaccination rates. Fifty-six of the schools serve both grade levels. Another 39 schools failed to file a vaccination report with the state.

This list includes half of Oakland Unified’s 48 elementary schools, 75 non-charter schools in Los Angeles Unified, 13 Pomona Unified, 14 schools in San Francisco Unified, and San Juan Unified County has 8.

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Clusters of Measles are being reported across the country. In the first 2 months alone, there have been 41 confirmed measles cases, 2 of them in California. Regardless of the reasons why parents choose not to have their children vaccinated, it leaves the vulnerable population of our nation at risk.

I told some of my vaccinated friends a joke about measles. They just didn't get it.