Experts Alarmed by Trump’s Vaccine Views
TL/DR –
At a campaign rally, Trump vowed to cut funding for schools enforcing mandates for masks or vaccines, later clarified to specifically mean COVID-19 vaccines. Despite no states currently having a requirement for students to receive the COVID-19 vaccination, public health experts, such as Georges Benjamin of the American Public Health Association, express concern that this rhetoric could encourage similar measures. Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported the percentage of kindergartners whose parents opted out of school-required vaccinations reached its highest level in the 2022-2023 school year.
Trump’s Stance on Vaccine Mandates Sparks Concern
President Trump recently pledged during a Richmond, Va. campaign rally to slash funding for schools enforcing mask or COVID-19 vaccine mandates. This statement has intensified concerns about the potential impact on child vaccination rates, despite the campaign’s efforts to clarify that Trump was talking specifically about COVID-19 vaccines.
While no states currently require COVID-19 vaccinations for students, many others like measles, mumps, polio, tetanus, whooping cough, and chickenpox are mandatory. The focus on COVID-19 vaccines and mandates has become a hot topic in Trump’s campaign, with him both praising the vaccines’ development and criticizing its use.
Given that no schools have a COVID-19 vaccine requirement, Trump’s threat appears to hold little weight. “He’s talking about COVID vaccines in addition to masks in the same breath, as he has done for the past year,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung explained in an email.
However, health experts express concern over the potential influence of Trump’s rhetoric. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, fears these statements might inspire similar measures, particularly if Trump secures reelection. “I worry about an administration ignoring good evidence and science, appointing more like-minded individuals,” Benjamin cautioned.
The concerns are backed by data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which reveals parent opt-outs from school-required vaccinations for kindergarteners have reached the highest level in the 2022-2023 school year.
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