Bill Would Ban Vaccine Exemptions

Two lawmakers said on Wednesday they would introduce legislation intended to ban personal exemptions exercised by some parents to decline vaccinations for their children.

Sens. Richard Pan, M.D., D-Sacramento and Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, have moved to introduce the legislation as California copes with its largest outbreak of measles in decades, the result of fewer children being vaccinated for the disease.

“As a pediatrician, I’ve been worried about the anti-vaccination trend for a long time,” Pan said. “I’ve personally witnessed the suffering caused by these preventable diseases and I am very grateful to the many parents that are now speaking up and letting us know that our current laws don’t protect their kids.” 

Currently, parents can opt out of vaccinating their children if they have personal beliefs against them, so long as they consult with a licensed healthcare professional about the potential impact on their households and the community before making the decision. That's the result of a 2012 law Pan co-authored, mostly in response to a movement against vaccines due to scientifically unfounded fears they’re linked to autism in young children.

Although that law initially caused the vaccination opt-out rate to drop by about 20%, it is still apparently high enough to cause spot outbreaks of measles and other diseases that had been all but eradicated due to vaccinations.

As a result, Pan, Allen and other lawmakers want the personal exemption to end altogether.

Should the bill pass through the Legislature and get signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, it would make California the 33rd state that would outlaw personal exemptions. for vaccinating children.