The most dangerous thing about the anti-vaccination movement isn't disease

The most dangerous thing about the anti-vaccination movement isn't disease — it's politicians

Vaccinations are becoming the hottest new political controversy of the week. While Vox's Andrew Prokop notes that many politicians and commentators have resisted the urge to exploit the moment for political gain and instead frame the debate around public health, both Republicans and Democrats have weighed in on the issue of vaccinations in the U.S. since measles, which was exterminated by health officials in 2000, reared its head in December. "This public, political jousting over vaccines is potentially more damaging than anti-vaxxers themselves," writes Mic's Tom McKay. "Support for vaccines has been bipartisan for years, but every highly visible politician that weighs in on the vaccine 'debate' risks politicizing what's objectively a public health issue — a risk that could not only make the work of epidemiologists and doctors more difficult, but risk inflaming and entrenching the anti-vaccination crowd more than any two-bit celebrity talking head or sensationalist headline ever could."