Vaccine hesitancy: Not a new phenomenon, but a new threat

Vaccines have been recognized as one of the top 10 public health achievements of the 20th century. In 1998, a study on the connection between measles, mumps, rubella vaccine and autism was published by the now discredited Andrew Wakefield. That study was retracted in 2010, but the damage was already done. The purpose of this article is to review the history of vaccine hesitancy and discuss a successful paradigm for speaking with vaccine-hesitant parents. Discussion of immunizations related to public health law and religious exemptions will also be reviewed.