Ohio teen who went against mother's wishes and got himself vaccinated testifies before Congress

NORWALK, Ohio — Ethan Lindenberger’s story quickly made national headlines when he chose to get himself vaccinated after turning 18 despite his mother’s belief that vaccines are harmful.

Now, the Norwalk teen has found himself testifying in front of Congress about the spread of preventable diseases and misinformation about vaccines.

You can watch his Tuesday morning testimony HERE:

"I approached my mother numerous times trying to explain that vaccines are safe and that my family should be vaccinated," he said during his testimony.

He urged the importance of halting the spread of false information regarding vaccinations.

"Ideas that vaccines cause autism, brain damage and also that the measles outbreak is of no concern to the society and to America, were ideas that were pushed by these sources that she [his mother] would go to. For certain individuals and organizations that spread this misinformation, they instill fear into the public for their own gain selfishly and do so knowing their information is incorrect. For my mother, her love, affection and care as a parent was used to push an agenda to create a false distress. These sources, which spread misinformation, should be the primary concern of the American people."

Lindenberger says he is now up to date on all of his shots.