Most illegals entering the U.S. are coming from climates known for tropical diseases. This comes at a time when many young parents are questioning the value of traditional childhood vaccines.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report in November found that potentially hundreds of thousands of children will forego vaccines that could prevent diseases like measles and whooping cough. The report found that 3% of children entering kindergarten for the 2022-2023 school year were granted vaccine exemptions from their states, the highest reported exemption rate in the U.S.
Forty states saw an increase in exemptions. Ten states – Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, Michigan, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, Utah and Wisconsin – saw exemptions rise past 5%. The uptick comes on the heels of the aggressive government push of the COVID-19 vaccines.
The vaccines and their various side effects have been the subject of great debate and scrutiny. Just last week, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo urged his state's residents to stop getting Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, saying the FDA has not provided "data or evidence that the DNA integration assessments they recommended themselves have been performed."
Dr. Robert Malone, the Chief Medical and Regulatory Officer for The Unity Project, said on Washington Watch Thursday that "heavy-handed" government policies during the pandemic have led parents to "reexamine" the vaccines for their children.
"It's rare now that I run into somebody, a young parent, who isn't talking about extending the schedule and which of these jabs can we drop," Malone told show host Tony Perkins.
Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) are a diverse group of communicable and non-communicable diseases that are mainly prevalent in tropical and subtropical regions. They affect more than one-billion people worldwide.
NTDs are caused by a variety of pathogens – including viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi and toxins – and are most common in conditions of heat, humidity and altitude. Left untreated, NTDs can cause severe disfigurement and disabilities, blindness, developmental problems and malnutrition. Combined with the current border situation, that greatly concerns Dr. Malone.
"A lot of the tropical diseases are potentially coming in with these folks who are coming from Latin and Central America and are not on the current vaccine schedule," Malone said.
Yellow fever carries a specific risk among many from these climates, he added.
"We do have the appropriate mosquitoes throughout much of the United States that can transmit Yellow fever. We don't have Yellow fever vaccine, thank God, on the standard schedule because it's a rather nasty piece of work," Malone said.
Sexually transmitted diseases, variants of Salmonella and more could cause problems as illegals are transported across the country.
"We're all familiar with the risks of diarrhea in using water from Latin America. Fortunately, we have good water systems, good sanitation, throughout most of the United States – but we're absolutely creating risk for tropical diseases," Malone said.
Trust for gov't in healthcare is lacking
Malone says government has an important place in healthcare but, for now, has lost its way.
"We don't need a bloated bureaucracy and administrative state – [but] we do need to rebuild public trust," he argued. "I think the only way that's going to happen is through accountability.
"There are individuals who are responsible for what's happened over the last three years, and they've not been held accountable. The usual DC attitude of 'you can never hold the administrative state accountable for their actions' needs to be broken."
