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A teenager who made headlines for defying his mother’s wishes and getting vaccinated at 18 will be sharing his experience in front of Congress on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Ethan Lindenberger of Norwalk, Ohio,\u00a0announced on Twitter<\/a> that he\u2019ll be testifying about the importance of vaccines at a hearing for\u00a0the U.S. Senate Committee on\u00a0Health, Education Labor, and Pensions.<\/p>\n Lindenberger said in the\u00a0video that he\u2019s looking forward to speaking about \u201coutbreaks of preventable diseases as well as addressing misinformation that causes these outbreaks.\u201d<\/p>\n He\u2019ll be testifying alongside<\/a> John Wiesman, the Washington state’s secretary of health; John G. Boyle, president and CEO of the Immune Deficiency Foundation; and other health experts.<\/p>\n I\u2019m happy to share that I\u2019ll be testifying at a hearing for the committee of health, education labor, and pensions about the importance of vaccinations! Check out the video here!https:\/\/t.co\/sPM12poJVi<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Ethan (@ethan_Joesph16) March 3, 2019<\/a> <\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Lindenberger\u2019s story went viral after he reached out to Reddit users<\/a> three months ago to ask whether he could be vaccinated as an adult.<\/p>\n “My parents think vaccines are some kind of government scheme … I’ve never been vaccinated for anything, God knows how I’m still alive,” he wrote. He asked “where do I go to get vaccinated? Can I get vaccinated at my age?”<\/p>\n Lindenberger has since received vaccines for hepatitis A, hepatitis B, influenza and HPV, according to records obtained by The Washington Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n His mother, Jill Wheeler, who has other children who are unvaccinated, told “Good Morning America<\/a>” that she was in “shock” when she heard of her son’s decision.<\/p>\n People choosing not to vaccinate have become a global health threat in 2019, the World Health Organization reported<\/a>. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recognized that the number of children who aren’t being vaccinated by 24 months old has been gradually increasing<\/a>.<\/p>\n ‘God knows how I’m still alive’: <\/strong>Son defies mom, chooses to get vaccinated at 18<\/a><\/p>\n Growing up unvaccinated: <\/strong>My anti-vaxx mother made me a health risk for the whole community<\/a><\/p>\n Contributing: Ashley May, USA TODAY<\/em><\/p>\n Follow N\u2019dea Yancey-Bragg on Twitter: @NdeaYanceyBragg<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Teen who got vaccinated against his mom’s wishes will testify before Congress<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n