A letter in the July 2, 2006 Washington Times by Linda Klepacki of the group Focus on the Family denounces an earlier piece by ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan:
Elizabeth Whelan's recent torrent of anti-parental rhetoric ("Cancer triumph and travail," Commentary, June 15) stretched the bounds of logic. Her only real message appears to be that parents, conservative groups, and moral values are the enemy of the scientific elite, who really know what's best for families.
She states that parental choice in vaccination decisions would usher in "disease profiles approaching those of the Third World." The fact is, parents already have the right to exempt their children from vaccinations, even those deemed mandatory. All fifty states allow for medically based exemptions -- and forty-eight states allow exemptions for non-medical reasons such as religious or philosophical concerns. And as promising as Gardasil is, it only protects against 70% of cervical cancer risk -- not 100%.
Groups like Focus on the Family celebrate the new vaccines that protect against cervical cancer, and support their universal availability. But we also stand for the rights of parents to make medical decisions for their children...