Legally Limiting Lies About Vaccines

JURIST - Academic Commentary, 2015

Posted: 21 Nov 2015

See all articles by James G. Hodge

James G. Hodge

Arizona State University (ASU) - Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law

Doug Campos-Outcalt

University of Arizona - Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health

Date Written: November 17, 2015

Abstract

Heard enough about the potential for childhood vaccines to cause autism or other harms? So have we. For decades, politicians have replayed over and over misbeliefs about the alleged risks of autism and other injuries from childhood vaccines. In the September 2015 Republican Presidential Debate, the one-time front-runner Donald Trump alleged he knew of a 2-year-old who was vaccinated, got a "tremendous fever" and "now is autistic."

Other Republican Presidential candidates, including medical doctors Rand Paul and Ben Carson, support vaccines but suggest they should be spaced out over a longer period than a child's first three years. Previously Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachman resonated their own anti-vaccination sentiments. In 2008 even President Obama acknowledged others' concerns about potential links between vaccines and autism.

Suggested Citation

Hodge, James G. and Campos-Outcalt, Doug, Legally Limiting Lies About Vaccines (November 17, 2015). JURIST - Academic Commentary, 2015, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2692123

James G. Hodge (Contact Author)

Arizona State University (ASU) - Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law ( email )

Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law
111 E. Taylor Street, MC 9520
Phoenix, AZ 85004-4467
United States
480-727-8576 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://https://law.asu.edu/degree-programs/public-health-law-policy

Doug Campos-Outcalt

University of Arizona - Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health ( email )

Tucson, AZ

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