As a Member of Parliament and minister, Rita Verdonk never shied away from controversial statements and she does not do so now in her political twilight years, in which she is a municipal councilor in The Hague. Verdonk took the plunge this week by not ruling out forced vaccination.
Fewer and fewer vaccinations. Measles and whooping cough are emerging. — © Getty Images
She is responding to the recent measles outbreak in the Eindhoven region, where at least fourteen children and one adult were infected. According to the GGD, they were all unvaccinated. In addition, there was news on Friday that four babies have already died from whooping cough this year. The low vaccination rate also plays a role there.
Also read: Measles outbreak in Eindhoven and surrounding areas, 15 infections reported
First of all: coercion is a remedy that can arouse great resistance and would give oxygen to the already growing distrust in the government. In that sense, Verdonk’s plea is not worth a recommendation. But that does not alter the fact that it is high time to put the vaccination issue prominently on the political agenda. The vaccination rate in the Netherlands has been declining since 2015, according to the RIVM. This is partly due to the success of the National Vaccination Program, said behavioral psychologist Bastiaan Rutjes in Nieuwsuur: people simply no longer see what a disease like measles can do. On the other hand, the corona period has increased skepticism about vaccinations: the anti-vax movement has grown noticeably.
Also read: The vaccination rate for infectious diseases must increase again
What is especially necessary now are not forced coercive measures, but significantly increased information campaigns. With clear and concise explanations about the usefulness of vaccination that counterbalances the suspicion that is mainly given a platform through social media. The past decades have indisputably proven the usefulness of vaccinations for public health. Since the introduction of the National Vaccination Program in 1957, thousands of children’s lives have been saved, according to the RIVM, through protection against infectious diseases such as measles, whooping cough or polio. It is urgently necessary to once again draw attention to this medical giant step in neighborhoods and neighborhoods where the willingness to vaccinate has dropped alarmingly.
2024-03-16 02:00:00
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