The scientific community strongly supports the use of vaccines, based on decades of experience and research showing vaccines are effective and safe.
A 2014 survey from the Pew Research Center found 86 percent of scientists with the American Association for the Advancement of Science think childhood vaccines should be mandatory. And the American Academy of Pediatrics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, National Academy of Sciences, and World Health Organization encourage vaccination and deem it safe.
The standard vaccination schedule from the CDC provides various vaccine recommendations for children and adults, including MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella), Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, and whooping cough), and the flu. The recommended vaccines are seen as crucial to preventing the spread of dangerous, sometimes life-threatening illnesses.
The scientific evidence shows vaccines are generally safe, barring a few rare, typically minor complications. Vaccines also played a key role in eradicating or diminishing diseases like polio, smallpox, tetanus, measles, mumps, and whooping cough.
