Fact Check

US Government Rolls Out Mandatory Adult Vaccination and Tracking Program

Rumor: The U.S. government plans to make vaccinations mandatory for all adults.

Published April 2, 2015

Claim:

Claim:   The U.S. government plans to make vaccinations mandatory for all adults.


FALSE


Example:   [Collected via Twitter, April 2015]


Public health officials will be monitoring Twitter and Facebook posts for anti-vaccine chatter

 


God in Heaven help us! & wake the FREAK UP PEOPLE! This is NOT a vaccine debate this is about your RIGHTS!

 


Public health officials will monitor Twitter and Facebook posts for anti-vaccine chatter that may indicate...



 

Origins:   On 1 April 2015, the oft-unreliable health-related web site Mercola published an article titled "US Government Rolls Out Mandatory Adult Vaccination and Tracking Program." Purportedly authored by Dr. (Joseph) Mercola, the article reported that the U.S. government not only planned to make vaccinations mandatory for American adults, but to also monitor social media sites for "anti-vaccine chatter":



This month, federal health officials are rolling out a national adult immunization plan that contains a new Mandatory Adult Vaccination and Electronic Tracking Program. The government is urging Americans to fulfill their obligation to support and comply with the anti-choice requirement to relinquish responsibility for personal health and well-being to federally appointed health officials through pharmaceutical enhancements.

Public health officials will be monitoring Twitter and Facebook posts for anti-vaccine chatter that may indicate non-compliance with federal vaccine recommendations and state vaccine mandates.


Perhaps owing to the volume of alarmist health claims that have originated with Mercola, the subtle (relative to the site's scope) satire was lost on many readers despite its inclusion of the following passage:



BS Alert Rolling Out in April

The government has already begun monitoring Twitter and Facebook posts to detect anti-vaccine sentiment for the purpose of monitoring for non-compliance with federal vaccine use recommendations.

As early as next month, the BioSafety (BS) Alert system will become fully functional, sending out text message alerts to any cellphone within a 500 foot radius of one or more suspected unvaccinated adults, who may also be parents of unvaccinated children.


Readers who made it all the way to the bottom of the piece before sharing it might have observed this addendum:



NOTICE

This piece is our annual April Fool's article. Some of the details herein are true, however, and the article could be suggestive of what we might face in the near future, should we fail to take corrective action to protect and preserve vaccine exemptions, informed consent, and medical freedom of choice.


Last updated:   2 April 2015

David Mikkelson founded the site now known as snopes.com back in 1994.

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