Anti-vaxxers are being called out time and time again for the worryingly detrimental impact their ideas can have on the health of children both here in Australia as well as overseas.
Now, in a shocking revelation out of the U.S., a Michigan mother who refused to have her son vaccinated has been served jail time.
According to the BBC, Rebecca Bredow wouldn’t have her nine-year-old son immunised, despite telling her ex-partner and father of the child she would do so.
Because of this, Ms Bredow has been sentenced to seven days in jail, and her ex-husband has been awards temporary primary custody of their son to ensure the child will get his vaccinations.
While Michigans, by law, are entitled to miss or delay vaccinating their children because of personal beliefs, where Ms Bredow’s case fell short was her inability to follow through on agreements she had made with her former spouse to have their son vaccinated.
Despite being together when their son was born and agreeing that they would wait to vaccinate him, after the couple split in 2008, the boy’s father insisted on having him vaccinated.
Upon handing down the jail sentence to Ms Bredow earlier this week, Oakland Country Court Judge Karen McDonald explained that, along with mothers, “sads get say” in the health and welfare of their children.
This didn’t stop Ms Bredow from sticking to her guns.
“I am an educated vaccine-choice mother,” she said.
“I would rather sit behind bars standing up for what I believe in, than giving in to something I strongly don’t believe in.”
Last year, a startling report revealed that more than 50 children over a 10-year period in New South Wales lost their lives to diseases that could have been prevented if they had have been immunised.
This is 50 children too many.
Researchers for The Child Death Review Team analysed deaths of children between 2005 and 2014 and found that 54 of those causes of deaths have a vaccine that is currently available.
For more information about vaccinating your child, book an appointment with your trusted GP now.
