European medical organisations reaffirm that the prevention of communicable diseases through vaccination is safe and very effective. Immunisation through vaccination is the best protection we have against serious, even deadly, diseases.
In recent years, vaccination coverage for children and adults has decreased in many European countries. Vaccine hesitancy has become one of the main challenges and reasons for low vaccine acceptance and uptake.
The influence of diverse anti-vaccine groups spreading misleading and often false information has increased, especially on social media. In Poland, a draft law amending the legislation on communicable diseases has been prepared against medical advice, submitted to the Parliament as a citizens’ initiative and rejected only after a decisive protest from medical organisations, experts and public.
This example shows that the risk of abolishing the obligation of preventive vaccinations and in due time exposure of many citizens to dangers of serious contagious diseases that are currently controlled by national vaccination programmes is real.
