Before its near eradication in the U.S., polio affected millions. I should know. I was one of them.

After founding the Pennsylvania Polio Survivors Network, I am reminded every day of the fear that existed before this terrible virus met its match in Jonas Salk's famous vaccine. Although it came too late for me, the effects of this vaccine-preventable disease have since put me in a leg brace. I require a cane for stability, and I am now dependent on a wheelchair for any distance walking.

Now diagnosed with post-polio syndrome, I do not see myself as a victim of this disease, and neither do my colleagues.

In spite of permanent paralysis, leg braces and wheelchairs, we are thriving. We are survivors, and we are determined. We are determined to support others in the fight — for each other, for those who still face polio across the globe, and for any child who is vulnerable. We understand, firsthand, that no child should suffer from a vaccine-preventable disease. The pain and disability can last a lifetime.

We know that no parent wants to harm their child, yet we've learned that many parents in the US are “vaccine-hesitant” because they have never personally seen the effects of these terrible diseases. We also understand how easy it is to end up taking in significant amounts of skewed statistics and misinformation about vaccines from the internet. These two things added together are a fearful combination.There was a time, not so long ago, when millions of Americans, especially children, had no readily available defense against invisible and life-threatening illnesses.Now, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared “Vaccine Hesitancy — the reluctance or refusal to vaccinate despite the availability of vaccines” among the Top Ten Global Health Threats. That, along with the return of both measles and mumps this year in such large numbers, is personal for us, as the U.S. was declared as being measles “eliminated” by the WHO in 2000. That status was nearly eliminated itself after a series of outbreaks this year.Even Philadelphia's airport recently had to warn travelers of potential exposure.With all of this happening around us, how do we help parents see the truth as to how permanent and disabling these diseases can be? How do we turn our passion into something meaningful?Certainly not with shouting matches. We want to use our passion to share this truth with education — by creating a resource for credible immunization information.

The Pa. Polio Survivors Network has partnered with Rotary clubs in the state for a project to print and distribute Vaccine Information Cards. Through our hospitals and pediatricians, we are making this easy resource available to every new parent in our state. It has easily accessed links to phone numbers and websites to credible vaccine information.Our message that brings forward Rotary International’s focus on disease prevention is simple, positive and evidence-based: vaccines work.We can’t be the only ones sharing this information, and fortunately, some lawmakers in Harrisburg agree.State Sen. Judith Schwank introduced a bill that directs the Department of Health to create and use a standardized form for requesting vaccine exemptions that would include a section for a medical provider to confirm they gave the parents scientifically accepted information on the benefits and risks of immunizations.We were given the opportunity to attend Sen. Schwank’s press conference when she introduced the bill.Meanwhile, state Rep. Dan Frankel has introduced legislation requiring parents seeking a religious or philosophical exemption for vaccines required by schools, to get an annual medical consultation to understand the existing threats to children’s health from communicable diseases.Currently, these parents only need to sign a form for the exemption once, rather than annually, as this bill would require.These bills do not block those seeking religious or philosophical exemptions from attaining them. Their goal is not to shame parents, but to provide them with credible information about vaccines so that they can make informed decisions about protecting their children from diseases that can have lifelong debilitating effects.Other states, in fact, have gone further, with neighboring New York eliminating its religious exemption earlier this year at the height of the measles outbreak.Frankel and Schwank’s bills are under consideration at the committee level, and we are optimistic that they will advance to their respective floors and be successfully passed. We are hopeful that all parents and citizens who wish to keep our schools, public spaces and homes safe from vaccine-preventable illnesses will rally their lawmakers to push these bills through.Vaccines are among the greatest triumphs of our global science and medical communities. We are survivors who are doing our part to remind the world of that story. We hope parents understand that we don’t want any child to suffer the pain and disability from a vaccine-preventable disease. The effects, without question, can be lifelong.Carol Ferguson is founder of the Pennsylvania Polio Survivors Network.