Opener: Your immune system is composed of organs, cells, glands, etc.

Its sole purpose is to

keep you healthy. When your immune system is exposed to foreign bacteria it attacks these

antigens with antibodies. If your immune system detects that virus in the future it will be able to

recognize it and work to prevent the disease faster. This is called immunity. Vaccines work by

exposing your body to weakened antigens which then allows your immune system to recognize

them and produce antibodies that lead to the immunity of that disease. The antigens are strong

enough to make the immune system produce antibodies that lead to immunity but not strong

enough to make you sick. Without vaccines your body would not be prepared if you did happen

to catch a disease. Not only do vaccinations help protect you but that also protect the herd or the

community as a whole. Immunizing individual children helps protect the children that are too

young to be vaccinated or have medical reasons that prevent it. Vaccinations are very safe and

have to go through a long process before they are made available to the public. According to the

CDC, “Clinical trials are studies conducted before a vaccine is made available. These studies are

carried out by vaccine manufacturers and help the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) make

decisions about whether a vaccine is safe, effective, and ready to be licensed for use…post

licensure studies are conducted after a vaccine is approved by the FDA and made available to the

public”. If vaccinations were not safe and effective there would be no reason for spending money

on research or fighting to make them required. Vaccinations have helped to eradicate smallpox

and almost extinguish polio and measles. It would be better to vaccinate for these diseases than

to risk the chance of contracting them and have medical expenses pile up and you or your child’s

life be on the line. Vaccinations should be legally required because they protect you, they protect

the herd, and they are safe, and cheaper than big medical expenses. It is not just a shot, it is a life

saver.
Cross Examiner:

1. Vaccines have caused an average of 98.65% decrease in the outbreak of diseases such as

Measles, Diphtheria, Mumps, Pertussis, Smallpox, Rubella, Influenzae type b, Polio, Tetanus

according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases without the vaccinations

how would you prevent the spread of these diseases?

2. Since 2010, there have been between 10,000 and 50,000 cases of whooping cough each year in

the United States and about 10 to 20 babies, many of which were too young to be fully

vaccinated, died each year

3. According to the Institute of Medicine if you were to delay or decline vaccination not only

would the children’s deaths increase.

Question Responder: (Facts + Statistics)

- Immunization prevents between 2-3 million deaths every year in all groups

- During 2016 an estimated 116.5 million (about 86%) of kids under the age of one

worldwide has received three doses of vaccine.

- About 19.5 million children under the age of one in ten 10 countries such as Brazil,

Ethiopia, India, Iraq, and Nigeria to name a few did not receive vaccines
 - Since the introduction of meningitis A in December 2010 vaccines in Africa have led the

control and near elimination of deaths

- Global measles has declined 84% from an estimated 550,000 deaths in the year 2000 to

89,000 in 2016

- 2016 fewer children were paralysed by polio than in any other year

Rebutter:
Closer:

Websites:

https://www.who.int/features/factfiles/immunization/en/
https://www.niaid.nih.gov/research/vaccine-benefits
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-gen/howvpd.htm
https://www.vaccines.gov/getting/for_parents/five_reasons/index.html
http://www.immunizeforgood.com/fact-or-fiction/benefits-vs.-risks