Why the Anti-Vaccination Movement is Wrong

Vaccines have been one of the greatest success stories in human history.

Smallpox has been completely wiped out, and many diseases have been almost forgotten about, including polio, tetanus, measles, mumps, and rubella.

Some say that the great success of vaccines has perhaps generated a level of complacency and lack of perceived need for vaccines. Vaccine coverage is certainly not what it used to be:

- Coverage has declined in nine of 12 vaccinations given routinely to children in England, according to latest data published in the BMJ and published by the NHS.

- The take-up of the MMR vaccine has fallen for the fourth year in a row in England

- Measles continues to circle in the EU/EEA, with new outbreaks reported

For vaccines to protect a population, a certain proportion of the population needs to be vaccinated. This is called the 'vaccine threshold.'

When the percentage of people NOT vaccinated drops below this threshold, the population can lose herd immunity, which puts vulnerable people at risk and allows the disease to spread quickly.

This is concerning.

In this video, investigative journalists explore the attitude shifts and global trends that are contributing to vaccine-hesitancy, and discuss what governments and public health authorities can do to address it.