As vaccine exemptions are on the rise across states, the Ford School's Paula Lantz spoke with U.S. News & World Report on the issue and the concerns it poses to public health. Lantz asserted, “When you allow people to opt out of vaccine mandates because of something as big and squishy as personal beliefs, more people aren't going to get vaccinated." She suggested this has dangerous implications for the entire U.S., not just for those in states that are loosening up. “Infectious diseases don’t care about state borders... They spread as people come and go across states, so even if one state falls below what we call ‘herd immunity levels of protection’ – which we get through vaccination rates – this would have impacts far beyond that state.” Lantz also noted that exemptions should not always be granted solely based on "personal beliefs."
