In a recent interview, Kentucky’s Governor Matt Bevin said that he supports parents who decide to vaccinate their children but also supports the right of parents to opt against vaccinating their children. He said he believes that such a decision should be left up to parents and not the government.1 2
“This is America. The federal government should not be forcing this upon people. They just shouldn’t,” Gov. Bevin told WKCT radio station in Bowling Green, Kentucky on Mar. 18, 2019.1 2
Gov. Bevin said that he and his wife Glenna, who is a registered nurse, chose not to vaccinate their nine children against chickenpox (varicella), for example. “They got the chickenpox on purpose because we found a neighbor that had it and I went and made sure every one of my kids was exposed to it, and they got it. They had it as children. They were miserable for a few days, and they all turned out fine.”1 2
Chickenpox vaccine is one of the many vaccines recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and mandated by state governments throughout the United States.3 Gov. Bevin does not agree with these mandates. “If you are worried about your child getting chickenpox or whatever else, vaccinate your child. … But for some people, and for some parents, for some reason they choose otherwise,” he said.1 2
The CDC recommends two doses of chickenpox vaccine be given to children—the first dose at age 12 to 15 months and the second dose at age four to six years.3
According to the National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC), there are two live virus vaccines for chickenpox that are licensed to be given in the United States. These include Varivax (Varicella Virus Vaccine Live) and ProQuad (Measles Mumps Rubella Varicella Vaccine Live), manufactured by Merck & Co.4
Gov. Bevin’s comments came just days after a lawsuit was filed against the Northern Kentucky Health Department (NKHD) on behalf of 18-year-old Jerome Kunkel, a senior at a Catholic high school in Walton, KY. The NKHD barred Kunkel from playing basketball because he refused to get the chickenpox vaccine.5 Kunkel argues that the action by the NKHD violates his First Amendment rights. He refuses the chickenpox vaccine because he says it goes against his religious beliefs, as the vaccine contains “aborted fetal cells.”5
The Varivax product insert states that the virus used to produce the vaccine was “initially obtained from a child with wild-type varicella, then introduced into human embryonic lung cell cultures, adapted to and propagated in embryonic guinea pig cell cultures and finally propagated in human diploid cell cultures (WI-38). Further passage of the virus for varicella vaccine was performed at Merck Research Laboratories (MRL) in human diploid cell cultures (MRC-5) that were free of adventitious agents.”4
The Proquad product insert states that the virus used to produce the vaccine was “propagated in MRC-5 cells. MRC-5 cells are derived from a cell line that was developed in 1966 from lung tissue taken from a 14 week aborted fetus and contains viral antigens.”6
References:
1 Bosman J. Remember Chickenpox Parties? Kentucky Governor Says He Let His 9 Children Get the Virus. The New York Times Mar. 21, 2019.
2 Yetter D, Loftus T. Bevin exposed his 9 kids to chickenpox, says vaccine not for everyone. Louisville Courier Journal Mar. 20, 2019.
3 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Chickenpox Vaccination: What Everyone Should Know. CDC.gov.
4 National Vaccine Information Center. Varicella Zoster (Chickenpox) Disease and Vaccine. NVIC.org.
5 de León C. Unvaccinated Student in Kentucky Sues After Being Barred From Playing Basketball. The New York Times Mar. 18, 2019.
6 NVIC. What is Measles Vaccine? NVIC.org.
10 Responses
We should have personal choice in this stuff. Forget the disease creators pushing vaccines loaded with poisons being injected into so many children as well as adults.
When you read what is in these vaccines… I had to get vaccinated before I could become a US citizen, and I was afraid of all the stuff that is in these vaccines. Aborted fetus cells, animal cells, heavy metals, god knows what else. But you cannot refuse otherwise you cannot become a citizen. I should have thought twice, but I was in love…
Hi Ingrid. I completely understand. My wife had to go through the same thing when she moved to the US. My youngest son was born in the US and suffered brain damage as a result of his MMR shot (and most likely the heavy metals passed on from my wife). Had we known (or even questioned) this insane practice of “one size fits all with zero liability” we would have stayed in Europe…but now the insanity is growing worldwide.
I just want to say Thank You to Gov. Matt Bevin for standing up for what he believes in. My parents did the same thing – back in the 50’s – let the kids get exposed – and build up their Immune Systems. Our Family Dr. also gave some good old time remedies too.
I commend that student for standing up for what he believes. I also agree with the Governor on this. It should be our right to decide what is best for our children. This is America. Where is our freedom.
This is what will progress as time goes on. Chicken pox was a mild childhood illness, yet it will magically morph into a deadly disease. Any “outbreak” will be loudly announced on the evening news. Why are so many people falling for this insanity???
It’s very scary to me to watch how very quick and easy it is for our rights and civil liberties to vanish with the passing of laws on which the general population are given no choice or voice. After vaccines are forced down our throats by the bought-and-paid-for bureauocrats, what next? Vaccine choice is just one issue but I commend the Kentucky governor for standing up and speaking out. We need more like him.
I agree with all of the previous comments. I stopped vaccinating my children & myself in 1978 when my oldest was 3.5 & my baby was 6 mos old. I had another child in ’81 then again in 2000 when I was 48. I have watched with horror as our civil liberties regarding “Medical Freedom of Choice” have been slowly eroding, with a sudden explosion of legislation looking (& succeeding) to curtail them even more. There can’t be anything more basic to personal freedom than being able to say “no” to injected medicine whether for oneself or one’s children. Science is everchanging & what was once accepted as the absolute “scientific” method, soon gives way to new findings. Thalidomide….Vioxx….Leeches….Mercury as medicine for typhoid (it killed Louise May Alcott after 20 years)….etc. To force medicine on a citizenry is antithetical to our Democratic Republic & Bill of Rights!
Funny, how these government people are so concerned about the poor little childern possibly getting measeles,and yet these same people have no problem killing a defenseless little baby.Ya right don,t be fooled by them there the same ones who tattoed the jew,s in Germany not so long ago
Hard not to notice that forced vaccination is being brought to us by the Democratic Party. The Republican governor of Colorado stopped their bill. The Republican governor of Kentucky speaks out against their bill. But the Democratic governors of Oregon and Washington don’t. Gov. Kate Brown is in favor of forced vaccination. She took at least $65,000 in Pharma money, and the ‘party of the people’ has become the party for Big Pharma.
Oregon puts all the power into the hands of a private-public agency, the Oregon Health Authority. I say private-public because it takes gifts and grants and by law doesn’t have to reveal who is giving them money. Of course, you could make an educated guess. This agency will have complete authority to add more vaccinations from the CDC list, such as making flu vaccination mandatory.
And once children have to be vaccinated from everything, allegedly to protect the immunosuppressed, don’t you think it’s a small step to then argue that adults are putting all these people at risk, too?
Once they’ve enshrined the lie that Jacobsen v Massachusetts gave the states the right to force vaccinate, they’re going to keep on growing their profits at our expense.
I carried a sign at the Oregon rally against HB3063 that said this was a bipartisan issue, but I don’t believe that anymore. If you’re against forced vaccination and a Democrat, be sure and let the party know how this will affect your loyalty to them. I reregistered and told my state representatives why I did.