Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Diplomacy or Submission? The Zionist Grip on US Political Power and Trump’s Uneasy Alliance With Netanyahu

3 days ago

Fresno Suspect Caught After Jumping Out of Second-Floor Window, 2 Others Arrested

3 days ago

Tesla Has Applied to Arizona for Robotaxi Service Certification, State Transport Department Says

3 days ago

Evacuations Ongoing as San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Scorches Tens of Thousands of Acres

3 days ago
Tougher Vaccination Requirements Move Forward in California
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
May 23, 2019

Share

SACRAMENTO — California lawmakers moved ahead Wednesday with tougher rules that limit parents from choosing whether to vaccinate their schoolchildren as a handful of opponents shouted “we will not comply” inside the Senate.

Senators sent the measure to the Assembly as the nation struggles to stem the highest number of measles cases in decades and as state efforts to strengthen vaccine requirements draw emotional opposition.

The California proposal would give state public health officials instead of local doctors the authority to decide which children can skip their shots before attending school.

Democratic Sen. Richard Pan of Sacramento said his proposal is needed because some “unscrupulous physicians” have been selling medical immunization exemptions since California ended non-medical exemptions in 2016.

Exemptions Still Would Be Allowed

Under the plan, doctors would have to certify that they examined the patient and then send the state health department the reason they are recommending the exemption. State and county health officials also could revoke exemptions if they are found to be fraudulent or don’t meet federal immunization standards.

“This is about keeping our community safe,” Pan said.

“It’s scary to me that this state is becoming a police state. It’s an issue that should be between the parents and the doctor, not involving the government.” — Victoria Kennicutt of Elk Grove

He said exemptions would still be allowed for the less than 1 percent of students who should avoid vaccinations because they have a severe allergic reaction or impaired immunity from a liver problem, the HIV virus, chemotherapy or other conditions. But those with legitimate concerns would then be safer in school because the vast majority of their fellow students would be vaccinated, Pan said.

“It’s scary to me that this state is becoming a police state,” Victoria Kennicutt of Elk Grove, south of Sacramento, said after watching the debate with other opponents. “It’s an issue that should be between the parents and the doctor, not involving the government.”

She said her daughter, Charlotte, broke out in hives after her shots at 6 months and 1 year, developing a high fever that lasted a week and regressing in her speech. She worries that her now-2-year-old daughter’s medical exemption will be voided if the measure becomes law and said she will move out of state rather than comply.

Medical Board Has Been Frustrated

The measure passed on a party-line 24-10 vote, with no Republican support. Four Democratic lawmakers did not vote, with two Democratic senators saying it goes too far or reneges on lawmakers’ earlier promise not to infringe on medical exemptions.

“These families are not cooperating because they’re in cahoots with the physician. They are truly unable to go after these physicians who are acting unprofessionally.” — State Sen. Richard Pan

Several Republican lawmakers said they agree the state should crack down on doctors who sell medical exemptions but that they should be sanctioned by the state medical board through the normal disciplinary process.

“Why isn’t the medical board dealing with these bad actors?” Sen. Jeff Stone said.

The Republican from Temecula called Pan’s bill “a dangerous intrusion, not only into the doctor-patient relationship but also the personal liberties of the parents and their children.”

Pan said the medical board has been frustrated in its efforts.

“These families are not cooperating because they’re in cahoots with the physician,” Pan said. “They are truly unable to go after these physicians who are acting unprofessionally.”

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

UP NEXT

Skydance in Early Talks to Acquire The Free Press, NYT Reports

Trump’s Attorney General Drops Fraud Case Tied to COVID Vaccinations

1 day ago

Homeland Security’s Noem Says in Talks With Five Republican-Led States to Build Detention Site

1 day ago

US Online Spending Surges $24.1 Billion as Steep Discounts Boost Sales, Adobe Says

Online spending soared $24.1 billion across U.S. retailers during the stretch from July 8 to 11 – dubbed “Black Friday in Summer”...

1 day ago

Packages are transported on a conveyor belt at the Amazon warehouse on Prime Day, in Melville, New York, U.S., July 11, 2023. (Reuters File)
1 day ago

US Online Spending Surges $24.1 Billion as Steep Discounts Boost Sales, Adobe Says

Presenter Rosie O'Donnell speaks on stage about Madonna during the 30th annual GLAAD awards ceremony in New York City, New York, U.S., May 4, 2019. (Reuters File)
1 day ago

Trump Threatens to Revoke Rosie O’Donnell’s US Citizenship

U.S. President Donald Trump gestures to the U.S. flag flying on a new flagpole after stepping off Marine One returning from New Jersey at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 6, 2025. (Reuters/Ken Cedeno)
1 day ago

Trump Intensifies Trade War With Threat of 30% Tariffs on EU, Mexico

Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks to the media in the Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington D.C., June 27, 2025. (Reuters File)
1 day ago

Trump’s Attorney General Drops Fraud Case Tied to COVID Vaccinations

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference to discuss the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s "National Farm Security Action Plan", outside the USDA in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 8, 2025. (Reuters File)
1 day ago

Homeland Security’s Noem Says in Talks With Five Republican-Led States to Build Detention Site

1 day ago

Clovis Police Say Teen Changed Clothes, Hid After Reckless Riding Pursuit

A Palestinian man from the Katoo family, with his son, mourns beside the body of his other son, who was killed by Israeli fire while seeking aid near a distribution point in Rafah, according to medics, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, July 12, 2025. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
1 day ago

Gaza Truce Talks Faltering Over Withdrawal, 17 Reported Killed in Latest Shooting Near Aid

After losing both of his owners, a 5-year-old cattle dog named Ozzy found a second chance at happiness thanks to a local rescue group and a loving foster home. (Mell's Mutts)
2 days ago

Fresno Dog Left Behind After Owners Die Months Apart, Now Needs a Home

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend