Immunization Exemptions for Child Care and School Attendance: AAP Policy Statement

Childhood immunizations prevent thousands of deaths, millions of serious illnesses, and billions of dollars in direct and societal costs each year. Despite the obvious success of vaccines, there is growing distrust, and some parents decline some or all vaccinations for their children, requesting nonmedical (personal belief) exemptions to comply with school requirements. All states but three (Mississippi, West Virginia, and California) allow for such nonmedical exemptions. There are true contraindications to some vaccinations, and such children require medical exemptions for school attendance, relying on the “herd” to protect them from vaccine preventable diseases.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reviewed the public health consequenc…