MONTGOMERY, Alabama (LifeSiteNews) — Legislation filed in Alabama would simplify the process for parents to exercise their religious freedom rights and get a vaccine exemption for their school-aged children.
House Bill 24 “would specify that a parent or guardian’s written declaration is sufficient documentation to exempt his or her child from a vaccine requirement for religious reasons.”
“This bill would also provide that if a public institution of higher education requires students to be vaccinated or tested for a disease, a student may be exempt for medical reasons or because he or she objects for religious reasons,” a copy of the proposed legislation states.
The legislation would remove power from bureaucrats. “To get a religious exemption today, parents have to fill out a form and have it approved by the Department of Public Health,” News 4 reported.
“This is all about parental rights and religious liberty,” sponsor Mack Butler, a Republican representative, told the media.
A similar bill died earlier this year, according to the Alabama Reflector.
“I plan to bring it back and continue to fight. We’re going to keep chipping away until we feel like we’ve got our liberties back,” Butler said in May.
Current vaccine requirements apply to both private and public schools, as well as daycares, according to News 4.
“Attendees of day care and Head Start must be age-appropriately vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, measles, mumps, rubella, Haemophilus influenza type b, polio, and chickenpox,” the news outlet reported. “Children in 5-year-old kindergarten through 12th grade must have had five doses of diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (four doses if the 4th dose was given after the 4th birthday). They must also have four doses of the polio vaccine (three if the third dose was given after the 4th birthday).”
Other requirement includes varicella (chicken pox) unless a student has already had chicken pox itself.
“Booster doses of the tetanus-diphtheria toxoid vaccine must be given every five to ten years after the preschool booster,” News 4 reported. “Children are also required to have received two doses of the measles-containing vaccine and one dose each of the mumps and rubella vaccines. These are usually administered as two doses of the MMR vaccine.”
Florida’s surgeon general recently announced the state would be moving to eliminate all vaccine mandates.
“The Florida Department of Health, in partnership with the governor, is going to be working to end all vaccine mandates in Florida law,” Dr. Joseph Ladapo said last week. “All of them!”
