Vaccination

Your opinion at the start - stage 1/6

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The British government has approved a vaccine against Covid-19. With the vaccine come many ethical issues. For example, how is the duty of the state to protect public health to be balanced against the right of the individual to give informed consent? Open Up is designed to help the layperson think through the main issues.

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Researcher: Paul Eustice; editor: Perry Walker

Drag these using the arrow symbol () so that they are in order, most preferred at the top

  • Vaccination should be voluntary and encouraged through publicity and dialogue.
  • Vaccination should be voluntary. Self-interest and social pressure will achieve high take-up.
  • Vaccination should be compulsory, with people refusing vaccination incurring penalties.

When Covid-19 arrived in the UK there was a general acceptance that we would have to accept restrictions on individual movements for the general good. Not everyone accepted this and, slowly, opposition grew. There were public demonstrations to support freedom of choice. Some people did not believe Covid existed, some thought it less dangerous than was claimed and some were willing to accept the risk anyway. New laws were introduced to protect the majority from those whose behaviour might spread the disease or overstretch resources, although some, like social distance at venues or masks on public transport or in shops, proved difficult to enforce.

Gradually, as everyone tired of lockdown and track-and-trace systems seemed to present administrative problems, hope for any return to a normal life started to rest on an effective vaccine.

Vaccines are in fact the most cost-effective procedures available to medicine, exceeding even the benefits of non-smoking campaigns. Now we have one for Coivd-19, the question is, how best to get it used?

This virus is contagious, dangerous and how it produces disease is not fully understood. It is also the focus of very divided opinion, increasing controversy and emotional responses. It is possible that any vaccine would be rejected by a significant minority (41,75, 89, 90). ‘Vaccine hesitancy’ is not a modern problem - there were protests against smallpox vaccine. Several countries over the last 100 years have tried enforcing vaccination by law and often met with fierce opposition, sometimes repealing or adjusting laws as a result. How should we proceed under Covid 19? Should - and could - government make vaccination compulsory to protect the health of its citizens.

Legally, any government already has a range of powers to deal with public health emergencies. “These provide, for instance, specific powers to detain people and restrict gatherings to manage the spread of infectious diseases.”(1) Although Article 8 of the Human Rights Act protects our privacy, there are situations when public authorities can “interfere with your right to respect for private and family life” ... to protect public safety or public health and to “protect the rights and freedoms of other people.“ (2) However, UK law at the moment explicitly prohibits mandatory vaccination for any reason (3, 7). What principles apply here, and how would you apply them?

References

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