VACCINEPOLICYSTATEMENTWefirmlybelieve in theeffectivenessofvaccines toprevent serious illnessand to savelives.Wefirmlybelieveinthesafetyofourvaccines.We firmly believe, based on all available literature, evidence, and current studies, thatvaccinesdonotcauseautismorotherdevelopmentaldisabilities. Wefirmlybelieve thatthimerosal, a preservative that has been in vaccines for decades and remains in somevaccines,doesnotcauseautismorotherdevelopmentaldisabilities.We firmly believe that vaccinating children and young adults may be the single mostimportanthealth-promotinginterventionweperformashealthcareproviders,andthatyoucanperformasparents/caregivers. Therecommendedvaccinesandthevaccinescheduleare the results of years and years of scientific study and objective data gathering onmillionsofchildrenbythousandsofourbrightestscientistsandphysicians.Thevaccinecampaignistrulyavictimofitsownsuccess.Itispreciselybecausevaccinesare so effective at preventing illness that we are even discussing whether or not theyshould be given. Because of vaccines, many of you have never seen a child with polio,tetanus,whooping cough,bacterialmeningitis, or even chickenpox,orknowna friendorfamily member whose child died of one of these diseases. Such success can make uscomplacentorevenlazyaboutvaccinating.But such an attitude, if it becomes widespread, can only lead to tragic results. Afterpublicationofanunfoundedaccusation(laterretracted)thatMMRvaccinecausedautismin 1998, many Europeans chose not to vaccinate their children. As a result of underimmunization, Europe experienced large outbreaks ofmeasles,with several deaths fromdiseasecomplications.In2012,thereweremorethan48,000casesofpertussis(whoopingcough)intheUnitedStates,resultingin22deaths.Mostvictimswereinfantsyoungerthansix months of age. Many children who contracted the illness had parents whomade aconsciousdecisionnottovaccinate.In2015,therewasameaslesoutbreakinDisneyland,California (probably started by an infected park visitor who had traveled from thePhilippines). The outbreak eventually spread to 147 people and again, many were tooyoungtohavebeenvaccinated.Whenyoudon’tvaccinate,youtakeasignificantriskwithyourchild’shealthandthehealthofothersaroundthem.Bynotvaccinating,youalsotakeselfishadvantageofthousandsofotherswhodovaccinate their children, therebydecreasing the likelihood thatyourchildwill contract a vaccine-preventable disease. We feel that refusing to vaccinate isunacceptable.

Wearemakingyouawareofthesefactsnottoscareyouorcoerceyou,buttoemphasizethe importance of vaccinating your child. We recognize that the choice may be a veryemotional one for some parents. We will do everything we can to convince you thatvaccinatingaccordingtotheschedule is theright thingtodo. However,shouldyouhavedoubts,pleasediscussthesewithyourhealthcareproviderinadvanceofyourvisit.Please be advised that delayingor “splittingup the vaccines” to give one or two at atime over two or more visits goes against expert recommendations, and can put yourchildatriskforseriousillness(orevendeath)andgoesagainstourmedicaladviceasprovidersatStarlingPhysicians.Becausewearecommitted toprotecting thehealthofyourchildren throughvaccination,werequireallofourpatientstobevaccinated.Allchildrenwillreceiveage-appropriatevaccinesandboosterdosesatrecommendedtimes.Finally,ifyoushouldabsolutelyrefusetovaccinateyourchilddespiteallourefforts,wewillaskyoutofindanotherhealthcareproviderwhosharesyourviews.Wedonotkeep a list of such providers, nor would we recommend any such physician. Pleaserecognize thatbynotvaccinating,youareputtingyourchildatunnecessaryrisk for life-threateningillnessanddisability,andevendeath.Asmedicalprofessionals,wefeelverystronglythatvaccinatingyourchildonschedulewithcurrentlyavailablevaccines isabsolutely theright thing todo toprotectall childrenandyoungadults.Thankyoufortakingthetimetoreadthispolicy.Pleasefeelfreetodiscussanyquestionsorconcernsyoumayhaveaboutvaccineswithyourhealthcareprovider.