Rep. Larry Buckson, R-Ind., said Tuesday that access to vaccinations for Americans, especially children and seniors, is “critically important.”
“We need to get back to a state of normalcy where we understand that vaccination has truly changed the world,” Bushong said at a panel event hosted by The Hill and sponsored by the American Society for Clinical Pathology, “Disrupting the Status Quo: Vaccinating America's Most Vulnerable Populations.”
“Access to vaccinations is really, really important for children and seniors alike.”
Buckson's comments come as the U.S. grapples with declining childhood vaccination rates due to persistent vaccine hesitancy amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
American parents still Overwhelmingly support Vaccination rates among preschoolers have declined throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and have yet to return to pre-pandemic levels.
National vaccination rates for kindergarteners dropped from 95% to about 93% between the 2019-20 and 2021-22 school years. data From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In addition, kindergarten exemptions rose to 3 percent last year, and vaccine exceptions increased in 41 states, exceeding 5 percent in 10 states, according to the CDC.
According to the agency, a vaccine exception rate above 5% limits achievable vaccination coverage and “increases the risk of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks.”
During the event, Buckson, who is also a physician, said Republican lawmakers have contributed to the spread of misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines by “blocking” doctors like himself from encouraging Americans to get vaccinated.
“I think we're getting back to more of a normal state. COVID-19 has caused a lot of chaos around the world and a scramble to get a vaccine to stop it,” he said. “Unfortunately, that scramble has also happened in an election year in the United States.”
The lawmaker said his biggest concern about remaining vaccine hesitancy due to the pandemic is that it's spilling over into childhood vaccinations such as for measles and mumps.
“This has been established medical care for most people for decades,” he said.
Bukson added that while some people may experience health problems after receiving the vaccine, the incidence of such problems is extremely low.
“Statistically speaking, you're going to be better off if you get vaccinated.”
