19-month-old Annah Poling was diagnosed with autism shortly after receiving five vaccinations in one day. Before receiving these vaccinations Hannah was a healthy child without any features of autism. The Polings, believing that the vaccines had caused his change, filed a lawsuit against the Department of Health and Human Services and won. The courts ruled that the vaccines he had received were responsible for his condition (Healy). This story is just one example of growing parental fear and opposition to vaccines. Likewise, the verdict issued by the courts has sparked protest from vaccine promoters who fear the negative effects this decision could have on public health. On the one hand, it is argued that the state should be allowed to impose mandatory vaccinations because this is in the best interests of our children. On the other side of the debate, parents should have the right to decide what to inject into their children's bodies, especially when the substance could cause permanent damage or death. Strong arguments have been made in support of both sides and some of these arguments will be examined in detail. There are no federal laws mandating vaccines; however, each state has its own mandatory state laws. All 50 states allow medical exemptions from the vaccine, and some states allow religious or philosophical exemptions. It has been reported that since the 1990s states that allowed religious and philosophical exemptions have seen a 250% increase in non-medical exemptions. This drastic increase worries vaccine advocates. They argue that these types of exemptions should be more difficult to obtain as there are serious negative consequences of not vaccinating all children who can be safely vaccinated. They… middle of paper… only now we are more aware of autism and therefore more cases are being reported. Experts believe that not vaccinating your child based on unfounded and inconclusive reports will only result in an increase in infectious diseases. This fear is evident in a statement released by some of the most respected medical professionals; “Using an unproven hypothesis to cast doubt on the safety of vaccination. . . could lead to widespread vaccine rejection and an inevitable increase in serious infectious diseases” (qtd. in Allen 411). Some studies have revealed that in places where vaccines have been associated with autism, vaccinations decrease and, as a result, some diseases re-emerge or increase in number (Autism and Vaccines). Overall, while vaccinations come with risks, they are also the best defense against our children developing many deadly infectious diseases (Meadows).