Vaccine Education Resource Center Parent Stories

Vaccines to prevent infectious diseases are among medicine’s most significant advances, wiping out or drastically reducing many dangerous illnesses from the face of the earth. But with progress comes complacency. Collectively, many have lost the memory of smallpox, meningitis, polio and other diseases, with some individuals considering themselves, their children and grandchildren safe, with or without vaccines. Misinformation about vaccine risks have compounded the problem, resulting in lagging vaccination rates in some communities and outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, a disease that was declared eliminated in the U.S. in 2000.