John Oliver Has Absolutely Savaged The Anti-Vaccination Movement

John Oliver has gone hard after the anti-vaccination movement and the “opportunistic quacks” who prop it up.

The Last Week Tonight host dedicated almost 30 minutes of this week’s show to vaccinations, which he rightly describes as “one of humanity’s most incredible accomplishments”. But in the past few years, concerns about side effects have seen some people choose not to vaccinate their children, a decision that puts the entire community at risk. When the federal government announced their ‘no jab, no pay’ scheme tying family benefit payments to immunisations, they were inundated with complaints. Meanwhile, an anti-vax rally in Melbourne last month attracted more than 150 people.

One of the main rallying points of the anti-vax movement is the supposed connection between vaccinations and autism, something that was first suggested by a 1998 study published in the generally reputable medical journal The Lancet. But as Oliver points out, that study has been discredited many times over, while its author Andrew Wakefield was stripped of his medical license after it was found he distorted his findings.

“He’s basically the Lance Armstrong of doctors,” says Oliver.

Despite this, anti-vaxxers continues to spout dangerous nonsense, fuelled by social media and a cavalcade of prominent sceptics like actors Jenny McCarthy and Rob Schneider as well as the President of the United States. “There are going to be some truly toxic comments below this video,” predicts Oliver. “Alongside the usual ones about how I look like an owl who can’t get a date for prom, or that I probably live alone surrounded by jars I’m too weak to open by myself.”

The comedian ended the segment on a personal note. “Parenthood in general is fucking terrifying, Oliver said, “I have a son. He is 19 months old. He was born prematurely following a very difficult pregnancy. And I was worried about his health and I still worry about his health a lot. But we are vaccinating him fully on schedule. And if I can overcome the temptation to listen to the irrational shouting of my terrified lizard brain, then I believe that everyone can.”

You can check out a short clip from Oliver’s segment on vaccinations below, and watch the full thing via this link.