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UPDATE: 4/18/2024 - SB 246 was referred to the House Health Committee on 4/18/2024.
UPDATE: 4/16/2024 - SB 246 passed the Senate 3rd Reading by a vote of 24 Yeas, 5 Nays, on 4/16/2024.
UPDATE: 4/4/2024 - SB 246 is eligible for Senate floor vote as of 4/4/2024.
UPDATE: 4/3/2024 - SB 246 was reported out of the Senate Education Policy Committee on 4/3/2024.
UPDATE: 4/1/2024 - SB 246 is scheduled for a hearing in the Senate Education Policy Committee on Wednesday, 4/3/2024 at 9:30AM in Location Finance and Taxation. View the hearing agenda and video details HERE.
SB 246 was introduced in the Senate and referred to the Senate Education Policy Committee on 3/21/2024. This bill is sponsored by Senator Arthur Orr.
SB 246 establishes that a parent or guardian’s written religious vaccine exemption is sufficient for school vaccine requirements. This bill also establishes medical and religious exemption options for higher education vaccine requirements.
SB 246 amends Alabama Code §16-30-3, related to vaccine requirements for school children, to remove the exception for epidemic conditions from vaccine exemption availability, remove the interference from the Department of Health in obtaining a religious exemption from school-required vaccinations for public school students in K-12 schools and to expand medical and religious exemption options to students at public higher education institutions, summarized as follows:
SECTION 1. Establishes that this act will be titled "The Alabama Vaccination Exemption Bill."
SECTION 2. amends §16-30-3(1) and renumbers it §16-30-3(1)(a).
(1)(a) Removes the exception for epidemic conditions or immediate threat of an epidemic when considering religious objections to vaccination. This subsection also codifies the parent or guardian's ability to object in writing to vaccination or testing that conflicts with their religious tenets or practices.
(1)(b) Removes the requirement to petition the Health Department for a religious exemption to vaccination per Alabama Administrative Code Rule 420-6-1-.02 and provides that a written statement provided by a child's parent or guardian directly to the local board of education declaring that they wish to exempt their child from any vaccination or testing requirement pursuant to this section shall constitute an exemption. This section also prohibits any additional requirement to explain their reason for exemption, certify the exemption with any third party, or otherwise receive approval from the local board of education or any other entity.
SECTION 3. adds a new section of code that expands vaccine exemption options to students at public higher education institutions, as defined in §16-5-1 to include all vocational, technical, collegiate, professional, or any other form of education above the secondary school level.
NVIC SUPPORTS SB 246 because it prevents the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) from exceeding its authority by creating rules that are not codified in the Code of Alabama. This bill protects a parent or guardian from unnecessary coercion, threat, and harassment from ADPH when attempting to obtain a religious exemption to state-required school vaccinations. SB 246 allows a parent or guardian to write an exemption for their child and give it directly to their local board of education without any interference from the health department. This bill also removes the exception for epidemic or immediate threat of epidemic conditions from the vaccine exemption availability for public school students. This removal protects students from vaccine requirements that may spring up due to epidemic conditions, as seen with the COVID-19 vaccine requirements that proliferated in response to the spread of COVID-19. SB 246 also provides additional protection for post-secondary students who refuse one or more required vaccines based on medical or religious reasons. Code of Alabama §22-11B-5(c), related to the exchange of immunization status data, already provides that institutions of education may continue to require proof of vaccination for any vaccine required as of January 1, 2021, so long as they give an exemption for students with a medical condition or religious belief that is contrary to vaccination. This bill is redundant in providing additional protection to higher education students for religious and medical vaccine exemptions. NVIC opposes all vaccine mandates. All vaccines are pharmaceutical products that carry a risk of injury and even death. Vaccination should not be a condition of receiving an education. An improvement to this bill would be to add private and parochial school students to the bill, allowing those students to attend school without a religious exemption obtained from the Alabama Department of Health but, rather, from a written statement by their parent or guardian directly to their school's administrator.
https://alison.legislature.state.al.us/files/pdfdocs/SearchableInstruments/2024RS/SB246-int.pdf - text of SB 246
For status and history of SB 246, click HERE and enter "246" in the "Quick Search" field at the top right and click "Search Bills."
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