Vaccination Myth #9:

"Vaccinations are legally mandated and unavoidable..."

...or are they?

Vaccine laws vary from state to state. While every state legally requires vaccines, every state also has one or more legal exemptions from vaccines. School and health officials will seldom volunteer exemption information, and are often mistaken when they do, so it is important to check the laws in your state to find out exactly what the requirements are. Each state offers one or more of the following three kinds of exemptions:

1. Medical Exemption: All 50 states in the US allow for a medical exemption. However, few pediatricians check for indications of increased risk before administering vaccines, so it is advisable for parents to research this matter for themselves if they have reason to believe that their child may be predisposed to vaccine reactions.
   Epilepsy, severe allergies, and a previous adverse reaction in a child or sibling are but a few of the many conditions in child or family history which may increase the chances of an adverse reaction, and thus may qualify for a medical exemption from one or more required vaccines.
   In general, though, medical exemptions are difficult to get, may be available only to those who have already had a serious vaccine reaction or who have a family history of serious vaccine reactions, may be granted only for the specific vaccine believed to have caused a previous reaction, and may be valid only as long as the condition giving rise to the exemption persists (i.e., may be temporary).
   
2. Religious Exemption: 48 states allow for a religious exemption (all but MS and WV). A state's laws may state that membership in an established religious organization is required.
   However, this requirement has been held unconstitutional in New York federal courts; personal religious beliefs are sufficient for a religious exemption, regardless of which religious organization you belong to, or whether or not you belong to an organized religion at all.
   In one case, the plaintiffs were awarded money damages when the court found that the state had violated their civil rights by denying them a religious exemption.
   
3. Philosophical or Personal Exemption: Approximately 17 states allow parents to refuse vaccination for personal or philosophical reasons.
   

It is worth noting that exempted children may be banned from attending schools during local outbreaks. But all schools, public or private, must comply with state vaccination laws and honor legal exemptions.

The best source for a copy of your state's vaccination laws is state health officials. A phone call to the state Department of Epidemiology or Immunization (the specific name varies from state to state) may be all that it takes to get a copy mailed to you.

Or, for a small fee, the NVIC and New Atlantean Press will sell you a copy of your state's immunization laws (see contact information at the end of this article). Statutes can be searched on the Internet (for example, see www.findlaw.com), but these sources many not always reflect very recent changes in the law, if there have been any. Law libraries and lawyers are, of course, a good source as well.

Vaccination Truth #9: