Immunization

Parental Refusal to Vaccinate

The following resources address common causes for parental hesitancy or refusal to vaccinate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Office Guidance

• AAP Refusal to Vaccinate Form (PDF 92KB)
  Health care providers may decide it is in their best interest to formally document a parent's refusal to accept vaccination for a minor child. This form, which should not be considered a legal document without advice from a lawyer, may be used as a template for such documentation. Microsoft Word version (DOC 248KB)

• AAP Clinical Report, Responding to Parental Refusals of Immunization of Children

• Coding Resources For Parental Refusal to Vaccinate (PDF 68KB)

• Sample Office Policy/Letter to Parents about Refusal to Vaccinate (6/9/08) This posting is not official Academy policy. Some pediatric practices have chosen not to accept patients who do not vaccinate, and this is a sample of how one practice addresses the issue. (DOC 34KB)

• Sample Office Poster: My kids are immunized! (DOC 3,108KB)

 

Resources to Answer Questions

• Providers Guide: Helping Parents Who Question Vaccines (Exit Site)

• Strategies for Addressing Concerns of Vaccine-Hesitant Parents (PDF 110KB)

 

 

Articles for Health Care Providers

• When Parents Resist Immunization (Exit Site)

• Vaccine Beliefs of Parents Who Oppose Compulsory Vaccination. Reproduced by Permission of Public Health Reports.120(3):252-258, Copyright 2005.

• Addressing Parents’ Concerns: Do Multiple Vaccines Overwhelm or Weaken the Infant’s Immune System?

• Chiropractors and Vaccination: A Historical Perspective. Reproduced by Permission of Pediatrics. Volume 105, Page e43, Copyright 2000. (PDF 438KB)

 

Common Reasons for Refusal

Use of aborted fetuses

• Response from the Vatican (Exit Site)

• Immunization Action Coalition Resources - scroll to "Religious/Ethical Issues and Immunization" (Exit Site)

• National Network for Immunization Information (Exit Site)

Use of pork in gelatin

• Response from Rabbi Abraham Adler (Exit Site)

• Response from Islamic Organization for Medical Science (Exit Site)