In recent years, there has been a lot of online debate regarding whether or not vaccines are safe. A study published in 1998 by British Dr. Andrew Wakefield claimed that there was a link between vaccines and autism, but upon further investigation, his paper was found fraudulent due to falsified data and alleged abuse against the people he studied. After these findings were made, the paper was revoked, and Wakefield lost his medical license in 2010. However, there were still people who read his paper after it was revoked. These people began to think that vaccines caused autism and hurt people more than help people. They took to the internet to spread their beliefs, and received backlash almost immediately. The anti-vax movement has caused many diseases that had been eliminated already to resurface, causing nationwide health concerns that would not have been an issue if people vaccinated their children against these diseases.
In my opinion, I think people should be required to vaccinate their children. There are very few risks, and it benefits the health of the public by preventing major deadly diseases, such as measles, from coming back. However, it would not be easy to create a vaccine requirement. Many different factors, such as religious exemptions and basic autonomy, would need to be considered.