Daycares should refuse unvaccinated kids: Parents' group

Parent association Boink thinks that children should be turned away from daycares if their parents make the conscious choice not to vaccinate them against illnesses such as measles. Boink said this in relation to the case of a baby from The Hague who was seriously ill and in hospital after a child not vaccinated against measles was at his daycare facility. The child came from the extra-curricular facility which is connected to the daycare center. Both facilities belong to Estro Kinderopvang. The baby's mother told her story to the Volkskrant on Saturday. He son is almost eight months old and not vaccinated against measles, because this only happens at 14 months. Meanwhile, an outbreak of measles in The Hague has made 13 children and two adults ill. It concerns several babies under 14 months old. "Children can die from measles", says Jellesma of Boink, who represents parents at the daycare. "A crèche should be able to say that they don't want to expose babies to this. They are responsible for safety. An eye is kept on everything: from washing hands to clean air.Why would they then not be allowed to do anything with such a serious risk as the measles?" "If someone has the right not to inoculate his child, the I as parent also have the right not to expose my child to that risk", says Jellesma. "Because of privacy, we can't always reveal this, but we see this problem increase. We have the impression that more and more parents don't vaccinate their children. The measles are really back." Whether the parents of the unvaccinated children come from the anthroposophical community is unknown. In 2008, this corner experienced an outbreak on the measles in The Hague. According to Branch organization Kingeropvang, crèches are not allowed to refuse unvaccinated children. "It is not lawfully obligatory to vaccinate your child. Therefore, a daycare center doesn't have to make it obligatory", a spokesperson said. Jellesma fights this. "If we have decided in the general conditions that crèches can refuse children who pose a threat for others, then it seems to me to be worth the effort to investigate if we can also let the measles fall into that as well."