Are there any sources that prohibit childhood vaccinations?

Question

The consequences of depressed childhood vaccination rates in some American communities, in the form of a building measles outbreak, have been in the news lately.

All public schools and most private schools in the United States require children who will attend (and who are medically able to receive vaccinations) to have had standard childhood vaccinations. In most states, however, parents are allowed to get around this requirement by claiming a "religious or philosophical exemption."

I am wondering whether there are any grounds for a "religious exemption" based on traditional Judaism. Such grounds would consist of a Jewish authority that prohibits childhood vaccination. A source that merely says, for example, that it's not halachically required would have no bearing on whether parents can legally claim exemption from state law based on their adherence to Judaism, since adherence to such a source wouldn't contradict compliance with the law.

Are there any authoritative¹ halachic sources that prohibit standard childhood vaccinations, such as MMR?

I am not asking for any of the following:

• Sources that permit, encourage, or require vaccination
• Sources that permit non-vaccination
• Reasoning without basis in explicitly on-point sources

Of course, consult your rabbi before doing anything based on what you read here, and consult your doctor before making any medical decisions.

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^{1. Define this word however you see fit, but the more authoritative the source in my eyes, the more likely I am to up-vote the answer.}

Answer 1

According to R' Dr. David Shabtai, in a 2013 Times of Israel blog post, there is no such source:

The religious exemption exists to protect people whose religion forbids vaccination, to allow religious practice without governmental intervention. The basis for this exemption is to protect people whose religion prohibits vaccinations.

This is not true for Judaism.

Simply put, there is no stream of Judaism nor any rabbinic or halakhic authority that prohibits vaccination. In fact, the opposite is usually the case. Using Judaism as a means to obtain a religious exemption from a school vaccination mandate is simply that – using Judaism to further your own agenda.

Answer 2

In Igros Moshe Orach Chaim 3, 90 Rabbi Moshe Feinstien rules that it is prohibited to do invasive preventive medicine, and definitely not on a child, because of the inherent risks involved. R' Shlomo Zalman Auerbach in Nishmas Avrohom Volumw 4, 243:1, rules that a doctor may not force a patient to receive a vaccine. Rav Shmuel Kaminetsky has ruled that for those parents who did research and found vaccines to be potentially harmful, are not allowed to vaccinate their child! Mrs.Barbara Rose

Answer 3

These articles quote Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky (and sort of Rabbi Shmaryahu Yosef Chaim Kanievsky) as saying that vaccines are ineffective and a hoax. Their position seems to be not just permitting non-vaccination but advocating it. I acknowledge it may or may not be read as a true prohibition. If they believe vaccines to have no positive effect, getting one may be prohibited because of chovel (self-injury), or for another reason. If it is really a hoax, it is onaah to buy it. Spending your insurance company's money on a hoax strikes me as theft.

@LN6595 quotes halachic journals to say that R' Chaim Kanievsky encourages vaccination. However, it seems that followers of Rav Kamenetsky do attempt to refuse vaccines and attend Jewish day school, as the above linked article says. He is considered an halakhic source by his community, as is Rav Kanievsky.