Gracias
Vaccines
Vaccines
For more than 200 years vaccines have been regarded as one of medicine’s miracles, responsible for saving more lives than perhaps any other medical advance in history. Recently, however, the conversation about vaccines has dramatically changed. Thanks to widespread misinformation, some people — parents of young children in particular — have become suspicious of lifesaving immunizations. Vaccines were a vital part of the public health system long before the COVID-19 vaccine offered hope to a long-awaited return to pre-pandemic life.
As misinformation continues to spread, GHLF is working tirelessly to make sure that high-quality evidence-based information is disseminated about the COVID-19 vaccine and vaccines generally. We regularly publish resources to inform the chronic disease patient community about the benefits and necessity of vaccines (including and especially the COVID-19 vaccine) and encourage shared decision-making between patients and health care providers. See our Patient Guide to Vaccines here.
Maximizing Vaccination Success
On the policy side, GHLF supports laws that restrict the ability for people to claim non-medical exemptions to vaccine mandates. We understand and respect different philosophical and religious beliefs but we believe that in order to maximize vaccination success and immunity for the public as a whole — and especially for those with chronic illness and autoimmune disease — vaccine exemptions should be permitted only for valid medical reasons.
In addition, our work with coalitions like the American Disease Prevention Coalition (ADPC) has allowed us to advocate for laws that would increase pharmacists’ ability to provide vaccinations, thus increasing the amount of locations where patients can receive them and cutting costs. See below for some of our recent vaccine related letters as well as some links to other pages in our organization about vaccines.
Recent Comments and State Letters
- 12/22/20: Organizations call for LGBTQI Data Collection & Targeted Outreach in COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Efforts (National LGBT Cancer Network Sign-On)
- 12/4/20: Letter to Congressional Leadership Urging Support for the Community Immunity during COVID-19 Act and the VACCINES Act (American Academy of Pediatrics Sign-on Letter)
- 4/7/20: Letter to Congressional leadership for the VACCINES Act of 2019 (H.R. 2862) (American Academy of Pediatrics Sign-on)
- 5/24/19: New York Senate Bill 2994, Removing the “Religious Belief” Exemption from State Vaccination Requirements