VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

Which statement best represents your views on vaccines?

Safe and effective

51%

Benefits outweigh risks of side effects

31%

Unsure whether vaccines are safe and effective

9% Risks of side effects outweigh benefits

6%

Unsafe and ineffective

2%

Parental Choice

Don’t call them “anti-vaxxers.” Some parents who choose not to have their children vaccinated say they’re not completely “anti-vaccination” but rather “pro-choice.” They believe parents should have the right to decide for themselves about vaccines—which ones, when, and how many.

“What people want is the truth and they want to be heard and acknowledged and they want a choice,” says Dr. Cornelia Franz, founder of the Franz Center pediatric practice in Orlando.

Dr. Franz’s truth is that not only are vaccines harmful, but they also don’t work. She points to recent outbreaks of illnesses and adverse incidence statistics from reporting sites. Despite that, her practice offers both alternative and traditional medicine, which includes vaccines.

She often hears about parents’ previous bad experiences.

“Parents have told me the same story over and over: that their child was fine and then 24 hours later or a few days or a week (after a vaccine), the child has lost eye contact, won’t talk, has had neurologic regression,” she says.

“Now, people might say, ‘You can’t prove the vaccine caused it,’ and I say, ‘You can’t prove it didn’t,’” she adds.

One of Dr. Franz’s biggest concerns is the number of shots given to children in a short timeframe. In the past 30 years, the recommended number of vaccinations has quintupled, she says.

The CDC schedule calls for up to 35 doses by the age of 10 and another 11 doses by age 18 for a total of 46 potential doses for 15 different vaccines. But to reach that total, a child would need to have multiple high-risk factors or special health conditions that necessitated all of the shots.

In Florida schools, students are required to have up to 21-24 doses for six different vaccines from