Anti-Vaccination Movement and Parental Refusals of Immunization of Children in USA

Abstract Despite an enormous success of the vaccination programs in the USA and an all time low incidence rate of vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs) pediatricians and family doctors are seeing increasing numbers of parents who refuse to vaccinate their children. Vaccine coverage decreases causing outbreaks of VPDs in the USA. Fear of potentially deadly diseases has been replaced by the fear of real and, more often, imaginary side effects of vaccination. This fear fuels an anti-vaccination movement with the help of media (especially Internet), celebrities, and politicians. Parents are being misled and are not trusting their doctors. After all attempts to persuade parents to vaccinate their children have failed, some doctors are refusing to see those patients. There is no easy solution to the problem, however, most important is to continue public education and persuasion and addressing vaccine refusal by respectfully listening to parental concerns and discussing the risks of nonvaccination.