When it comes to vaccination, "mandatory" has a specific and not entirely obvious meaning in the United States. Every state has procedures by which parents can choose to opt out of the mandatory vaccination schedule, usually by specifying that they have religious or philosophical objections to the practice.
So "mandatory" doesn't mean that everyone is forced to get the vaccine. It means, instead, that everyone who is indifferent or shiftless or haphazard or uneducated or simply not prioritizing preventive medicine is required to get the vaccine. And more importantly, insurance companies and governments are required to pay for mandatory vaccines - but not optional ones.
Here's my old Respectful of Otters post (http://respectfulofotters.blogspot.com/2006_06_01_archive.html#115014348839784276#115014348839784276) about mandatory HPV vaccine.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-10-25 01:43 am (UTC)So "mandatory" doesn't mean that everyone is forced to get the vaccine. It means, instead, that everyone who is indifferent or shiftless or haphazard or uneducated or simply not prioritizing preventive medicine is required to get the vaccine. And more importantly, insurance companies and governments are required to pay for mandatory vaccines - but not optional ones.
Here's my old Respectful of Otters post (http://respectfulofotters.blogspot.com/2006_06_01_archive.html#115014348839784276#115014348839784276) about mandatory HPV vaccine.