THERE are a number of religions that eschew some or all modern medical care on theological grounds.
Christian Scientist, the Amish, Mormons and Scientology are just a few of the well-known religious groups who do this.
It is likely that these groups will be joining what is believed to be many millions of people who follow the anti-vaccine movement.
They are called anti-vaxxers and they have existed for a long time. It is a growing trend, apparently, as more and more people join the movement, perhaps forgetting that diseases like smallpox and polio have been all but eliminated because of vaccines.
Vaccines have also protected us against some other less dangerous or less virulent diseases and, for decades, these are what the anti-vaxxers have been shouting out against.
That was a small matter, and we were happy to just let anti-vaxxers be, saying that all they are doing is putting their own children's lives at risk.
As long as our children are inoculated, they are safe.
But the truth is, letting anti-vaxxers continue with their claims will pose a latent threat to us all.
Letting them to carry on means anti-vaccine propaganda is allowed to be heard. Their numbers are growing. Their voices are becoming louder.
Now, faced with a pandemic that has killed more than a million, infected millions and affected billions, we may soon pay a huge price for not doing all we can to counter anti-vaxxers.
Countless reports have stated that the rollout of the global Covid-19 vaccine programme, one which we have been eagerly anticipating for the better part of the year, may be undermined by the anti-vaccine movement.
In Malaysia, the movement is, like elsewhere in the world, reportedly becoming bigger and more organised. And apparently, with news that a vaccine will be available to us by the first quarter of next year, anti-vaxxers in Malaysia are upping their game by spreading conspiracy theories and misinformation on social media.
This is where the big problem hits us. If these conspiracy theorists successfully influence many people into not getting vaccinated, then we cannot stop the pandemic here.
Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has explained that if 70 per cent of the population is vaccinated, then we can achieve herd immunity.
But what happens if we cannot achieve that figure because anti-vaxxers have convinced people not to get the jabs? Then, we fail to get herd immunity and we will fail to knock out Covid-19 here.
We have allowed anti-vaxxers to spew misinformation for too long. We need to counter them. This Leader believes, for one, that transparency is vital.
The right information — this means facts — must be disseminated to the public. Each little bit of misinformation that anti-vaxxers come up with, the authorities must present facts that prove otherwise.
Second, the authorities need to prepare the public for the vaccines. They need to be reassured that the vaccines are safe.
There will always be some fear about being vaccinated for a virus that is completely new, no matter how many tests have been conducted beforehand — that is exactly why they need to be reassured about.
All these need to start now, so that when the vaccines come, the programme can be rolled out immediately.