As I mentioned in my recent blogpost about vaccines being miracle drugs, vaccine deniers were few and far between when I was in practice. Almost every toddler I delivered, or took care of, was given the standard vaccines on the schedule endorsed by the CDC and numerous physician specialty organizations.
Today, however, as a direct result of the Covid-19 vaccine debacle, more vaccine deniers than ever exist throughout the country. That’s a real shame because vaccines truly are miracle drugs that have saved millions of lives. In recent years, these folks have become more numerous and more vocal in their attempts to influence parents to reject the routine administration of life-saving vaccines based on supposition and anxiety.
medscape.com is one of my most reliable sources for subject matter for articles published on DrGOpines.com. On June 5th, an article appeared which I felt was representative of of the anti-vax movement. It dealt with the dilemma of how to deal with militant anti-vaxxers who are threatening to turn the community against you and your long-held opinions on vaccines. The doctor consulted with a university medical ethicist about how to deal with the situation, and if he was liable were he to dismiss them from his practice. That would pose big issues because he was the community’s only physician and the next nearest doctor was 60 miles away. He would definitely be liable for abandonment of his responsibility.
The ethicist first recommended the doctor talk to his wife and get her sense of the community’s attitude and prepare herself for public scrutiny. This is the kind of situation that could cause a big rift in the town. Then, he recommended the doctor not dismiss them altogether, but continue to care for their other needs while continuing to educate them on the error of their decision.
The doctor decided to continue to care for their needs, minus immunizations, and reinforce the positions of the state health department in response to an outbreak, and implore the family not to spread vaccine misinformation. That sounds like an easy solution, but it definitely is not. Anti-vaxxers are a different breed and are strongly committed to their opinion. Their minds don’t change easily and listening to reason is over-shadowed by their strong dislike for vaccines.
A final outcome has not yet been determined in this scenario. I think the anti-vaxxers have the upper hand and will probably prevail, much to the chagrin of physicians and all experts in communicable disease. The best we can do, short of threatening consequences for non-adherence, is to educate, educate, and educate, and hope the message gets through to the deniers
References: Caplan AL. Can you ban Anti-vax Family from a rural practice? Ethicist Weighs in.
medscape.com 2026 June 5.
