According to New York Times, less than 1 percent of kindergartners entering California schools had vaccine exemptions based on their parents’ beliefs in 2000. In 2014, the number climbed above 3 percent, with some areas reaching above 20 percent.

More parents are refusing to vaccinate their children because of their “personal beliefs.” The children start to pose a threat to the healthy community and the ones who are unable to get vaccinated because of certain diseases. As a result, they are being pulled out of public schools and are homeschooled.

The main reason why parents think vaccination is such a bad idea is the misbelief of vaccinations causing diseases such as autism. The idea is a myth, even for kids with a higher risk to develop the disease (kids with older siblings that are carriers). Dr. Anjali Jain of the Lewin Group, a healthcare consulting organization, said, “We are able to look at the vaccines themselves and show there is no association with autism.”

Every single student should being vaccinated. One sick student shouldn’t cause outbreaks in public places and schools. There should be programs that teach parents about the unpleasant and sometimes deadly consequences of avoiding vaccinations for their children. If parents continue fighting against mandatory vaccinations, diseases that were thought to be contained a long time ago will make a comeback and infect children and adults.

On April 22, the U.S. Senate passed the mandatory vaccination bill, as known as Pan’s Bill. The bill eliminates vaccination exemptions based on personal and religious beliefs and bans unvaccinated students from attending public and private schools. The bill should be signed into a law because it will prevent thousands of outbreaks here and there and will ensure a healthy future for the society.

The “spark” that caused the bill to be proposed was the measles outbreak in Disneyland during early January. The visit of an unvaccinated visitor that created a domino effect infecting at least 50 people in five states and Mexico was a wake up call for the government.

To promote vaccinations, a character from kids’ all time favorite TV show Sesame Street has made an appearance on TV to teach kids all about them and demonstrate the easiness of the shots. Elmo gets a shot while singing “Shake it Off’ by Taylor Swift in the video and says that he did not even feel a pinch.

Many kids are scared of vaccinations and all the other types of shots when they are younger. They need to learn about their immune system and how it sometimes needs new “information” to protect their bodies against diseases. Assuring kids that vaccinations are needed for their health is very important. It’s essential that they understand all the benefits of getting vaccinated so they are not scared about it and so their parents don’t have any doubts.

All parents need to realize that these immunizations serve a great purpose for their kids’ health and everyone around them. Personal beliefs are not going to cure their children if they get sick, not having been vaccinated. Vaccinations are one of the best methods to avoid numerous diseases and keep everyone healthy and happy.