Chapter 486: Does Anyone Object to Compulsory Vaccination for Specific Groups of People?

"So, promoting universal vaccination is for each of us and for the health of our loved ones - do you have any questions?"

"have!"

Several hands on the other side were raised high. The host looked at him, then looked across from him, and banged the gavel:

"The gentleman in the black coat on the far right of the second row, please speak!"

"First of all, thank you for inventing cowpox and protecting people's lives and health." The person who raised his hand stood up calmly and bowed to Grete first. Gretel hurriedly returned the gift, and the other party smiled slightly and continued:

"I have a question, and I would like to ask Master Nordmark to clarify it - it is also to defend against smallpox. Do I have the right to decide which method to use? If I decide, I want to infect smallpox and then use the method of [removing the disease] To get—”

He paused, recalled the words in Gretel's paper, and then continued:

"... to obtain immunity, so can I be exempted from vaccination with cowpox?"

...This must be possible. The foundation of the city of mage is freedom——

"The Churches and Magical Councils, the free citizens and their descendants shall at all times and at all times enjoy the full and complete enjoyment of the following freedoms..."

This sentence is engraved on the stone tablet where all parties swear an oath at the beginning of the mountain road leading to Igor Peak!

Before Gretel could respond, several mages on both sides of him nodded at the same time. The person who raised his hand smiled and said:

"Since there are exceptions and mandatory vaccination for all, I don't think it is necessary. Mr. Nordmark, what do you think?"

Fortunately, someone raised this issue during the previous deduction. Grete secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He smiled confidently, turned to the clergy opposite the host, and bowed slightly:

"My dear bishops, I have something to ask you. - Accepting magical treatment and recovering in a short period of time will cause a certain loss to the person, isn't it?"

In the Church of the God of Nature and the Temple of the Spring Goddess, several healers nodded slightly. A bishop from the Temple of the God of War said simply:

"That's right. Therefore, even if an injured soldier is healed by divine magic, it is best not to go to the battlefield immediately. He should eat, drink and recuperate for a while. This is common sense in magical treatment. You should also know it. How to return it? Come and ask?"

Uh... Mr. Bishop, you are too honest. Isn't this just setting the stage for the next sentence? Grete tried hard to ignore the laughter next to him: As long as I am not embarrassed, others will be embarrassed. He looked directly into the bishop's eyes and continued to ask:

"So, if a young child receives too many magical treatments, will it cause too much damage and affect his future development potential?"

"Well……"

Several healers exchanged glances with each other. Pastor Matthew, who was present on behalf of the Order of the God of Nature, was the first to speak:

"We mainly treat poor people, and we don't have a lot of information in this area. But in my impression, there are young people with good qualifications who suffered too serious injuries during their growth period. Although they were cured, their future was cut off."

"We mainly treat warriors here." The bishop of the God of War Temple answered secondly. "Children who are not old enough to practice martial arts rarely come to us to ask for treatment."

Okay, there is no information here either. All eyes at the scene fell on the priest of the spring goddess:

As a goddess, the teachings of the Spring Goddess naturally include the teaching of "protecting mothers, young children, and protecting families." In contrast, the goddess of spring water's magical arts have more to do with treatment, purification, and cure of diseases than others. The priest straightened the end of his belt and said uncertainly:

"Generally speaking, if you often need to receive magical treatment when you are young, it is true that there are very few high-level warriors. But, maybe it is because you are already weak?"

Weakness = no potential = at least it is not easy to achieve success on the path of a warrior, which makes sense...

Grete shrugged: Well, this view is supported by specious arguments and requires extensive data collection and elimination of interference items. However, you can’t ignore the danger to your child just because “there may not be a problem”?

He turned to the questioner seriously:

"So, if young children receive too many magical treatments, their potential may be lost. I think, as parents, you always want your children to have an easier life, right? Even if the parents have used [Remove Disease], Where are the nannies around the children? Where are the guards? The cooks, servants, and playmates outside?"

It is obviously impossible to throw a [remove disease] at everyone a child may come into contact with: life is priceless, and life is valuable. The value of a civilian's life, no matter what, is less than 100 gold coins.

The city of Nevis hired an adult man to work in the New World for ten years, and the price paid was only a few dozen gold coins. ——The sea is rough and the waves are rough, and the future of the New World is unpredictable. After ten years, there will be very few people who can earn enough for the ship ticket and some savings to come back. Once you go there, you will almost never be able to return to the north for the rest of your life.

Therefore, this price is mostly regarded as the "life price".

No one would be so stupid to pay 750 gold coins for a life worth less than 100 gold coins. In order to make the environment for their children as safe as possible, it is obvious that it is beneficial to the nobles and wealthy businessmen to fully implement cowpox vaccination——

As soon as Grete's question was raised, the original opponents in the hearing room softened their expressions. Grete sat down calmly and listened to the two sides continuing to exchange words. Soon, the debate about compulsory cowpox vaccination advanced from "should it be necessary" to "how should it be implemented":

Opponents questioned that "eight to nine million gold coins a year is too high";

The parliament said, "By purchasing pox vaccines in large quantities and using cheap vaccination equipment, the per capita price can be reduced to less than one silver coin, which means that at most 80,000 or 90,000 gold coins";

Opponents questioned that "it is still too expensive to charge so much tax at once";

The parliament stated that "anyway, cowpox vaccination should be gradually rolled out and can be collected and vaccinated in batches."

Opponents questioned that “there are not that many people who need the authorities to pay for vaccinations”;

The parliament replied "At least the poor need the authorities to pay..."

"So how many people are definitely in extreme poverty and need the authorities to bear the cost of vaccination?" someone on the opposition side asked loudly. There was silence around Gretel for a moment. Behind Archmage Grete, to the left, a city hall official with a mustache flipped through the information and said slowly:

"First of all, the poor in the workhouses must be borne by the authorities. As of now, there are three workhouses in Nevis, housing 2,685 poor people."

At one silver coin per person, that's more than two hundred gold coins, but less than three hundred. There was a sound of exhalation in the conference hall: This small amount of money was covered by everyone present throwing a handful of money. Which gentleman can't take out three or five gold coins in his pocket?

Oh, the mages probably can't afford it. They are more accustomed to digging out mage badges and paying contribution points...

The atmosphere in the conference hall relaxed. The mustachioed official continued:

"Secondly, the poor who receive out-of-hospital relief should not be able to afford the money and need help from the authorities. The number of this group of people is..."

Out-of-hospital relief is one of the implementation methods of the poverty relief system. Many poor people did not live in workhouses, but received weekly cash relief, as well as regular in-kind relief, including clothing, food, quilts, fuel, etc., and sometimes even rental relief.

This number is difficult to count. Fortunately, the city of Nevis has implemented a poverty relief system for hundreds of years and has accumulated sufficient experience. The average annual relief fund for each poor person is about 1 gold coin. As long as we calculate the funding over the years, we can draw a rough conclusion:

"About 40,000 people."

In other words, one in every 25 people in the entire city of Nevis is so poor that he needs to receive relief grain to fill his stomach and bedding for the winter. It is obviously impossible to expect these people to pay 1 silver coin each. This money must be paid by the city hall——

"I agree it's up to the authorities."

"agree."

"agree."

There was a mixed chorus of approval. The host seized the opportunity and struck with a gavel:

"So, among the extremely poor people receiving relief, compulsory vaccination will be implemented, and the cost will be borne by the authorities. Does anyone object to this suggestion?"

No one objected. What 40,000 people need is only 4,000 gold coins, which is just a drop in the bucket compared to 800,000 or 900,000 gold coins. Even if the noble master doesn't contribute the money, the wealthy businessmen in the city can easily share:

It's just a matter of skipping a few big meals and buying two pieces of clothes, so that I won't be unable to afford it.

And let’s be honest, the destitute have value too. My Lords and Gentlemen can clearly see that establishing a poverty relief system to support these extremely poor people not only follows God’s teachings to appease the poor and increase social stability, but also has practical value:

Those who lived in the workhouse had to work non-stop every day. Even children as young as six or seven years old have to sort threads, weave hemp ropes for cables, and do all kinds of work within their ability;

For those who receive out-of-hospital relief, the rations are simply not enough to eat. If you want to receive relief, you must follow the guidelines of the poor, go to some workshops and shops, and do the hardest and most tiring work to earn a meal for yourself;

At worst, these extremely poor people can still have children! When the child grows up, he can enter a workshop, become a soldier, and go to the New World to occupy territory! Population is an important resource for this society!

Relatively speaking, if each person throws another silver coin, it is a one-time expenditure to ensure that the previous silver coin does not fall into the water every year, and there is no loss!

"Next, a compulsory and free vaccination system will be implemented for newborn babies. Does anyone object?"

No one objects to this. If a baby dies due to smallpox, it means that the mother has to give birth again, which takes up a year of labor time of a woman of childbearing age - the value of labor is far more than one silver coin. Not to mention the damn maternal mortality rate in this world...

Anyway, in the entire city of Nevis, only a few thousand babies are born a year, so they can afford a few hundred gold coins.

"Does anyone object to the implementation of compulsory vaccination for workers who have close contact with people and may spread smallpox - such as coachmen, porters, restaurant servants, laundresses, tailors, and workers in garment and blanket making workshops?"

There was silence in the conference hall. Gretel looked around and understood the thoughts of the adults and gentlemen very well: These workers are the most vulnerable to the disease. For the sake of their own safety, it is best not to object...

Well, it is unlikely that the city-wide mandatory vaccination will be implemented immediately within a short period of time. Compulsory vaccination for specific groups of people, covering those most in need of protection, the plan is approved!

Gretel gave himself a thumbs up. Seeing the mustached city official finish his speech, he raised his hand and added:

"Also - people setting off to the New World should be vaccinated against cowpox before boarding the ship. Does anyone object to this?"

The natives of the New World are the least resistant! If a smallpox patient is let go, if he is unlucky, he can die in one settlement! "

Grete felt that he was far-sighted and what he said made sense. Unexpectedly, Archmage Grom next to him coughed:

"Mage Nordmark, there is no need to talk about this kind of thing in the conference..."

Gretel:? ? ?

****

Writing these chapters, the information will kill me...

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