December 2, 2016.
A committee of experts, commissioned by the Minister of Health, Marisol Touraine to respond to the mistrust of the French towards certain vaccines, recommends making vaccines against whooping cough, hepatitis B and measles compulsory.
French parents’ mistrust against vaccines
In France, vaccines against diphtheria, tetanus and polio are mandatory but those against pertussis, hepatitis B virus, Haemophilus influenzae bacteria, pneumococcus, meningococcus C and measles, mumps, rubella viruses are only recommended. As a result, many parents refuse to have their children vaccinated.
This mistrust is a French exception. According to a study published in September by the journal EBioMedicine, 41% of French people are suspicious of vaccine safety and 17% doubt their effectiveness. To face this mistrust, the expert committee, headed by Professor Alain Fischer, considered that the best solution was to make certain vaccines compulsory.
Children protected against 11 diseases
If this recommendation became effective, all children would be protected against eleven diseases against three currently. A “ exemption clause For parents not wishing to respect this obligation would still exist. “ Parents who refuse these vaccines should commit in writing to this decision., after having received information on the beneficial and undesirable effects of vaccines, but also on the possible effects of non-vaccination », Explains Claude Rambaud, vice-president of the committee.
But to convince parents, the committee argues thatit would be preferable that these vaccines be reimbursed in full. According to Prof. Fischer, “ it would cost 150 million euros per year, it is a huge sum but not astronomical “. Ultimately, once the support of the population and health professionals has been acquired, the committee hopes that compulsory vaccination will no longer be a necessity.
Read also: Vaccination: current ideas and debates
