The bill is still in it's original form, and says that every child in the state of California must be fully vaccinated according to the cdc schedule before they start school, preschool, or daycare. This means that anybody who is missing a single dose of the 49 doses required by age 6 would be forced to get their missing doses (all at one time), even if they have a religious or philosophical opposition. Medical exemptions are the only way to opt out of a vaccine, and are nearly impossible to get. For example, if a kid has a seizure after receiving the MMR shot, they would not qualify for a medical exemption. Only kids who have cancer, HIV, or who had an anaphalactic reaction to a vaccine will be medically exempted AND the medical exemptions can be overturned by the department of public health. Siblings of kids who have had reactions are not exempt.
Aside from the basically impossible to get medical exemption, the only way out of forcibly getting all the shots would be to homeschool. In California, there technically isn't a homeschool option, but families can register with a public or private charter school to do it. It seems at the moment that the private charter schools may be the only option for those who don't want to be forcibly vaccinated, but this means all those who are homeschooling through the public charter now will lose the money they receive each year. It also means that kids with special needs will have a harder time receiving a decent education, without access to district specialists. It ALSO means that parents like me who spent gobs of time and money earning a professional title will not be able to work, since we will essential be forced to homeschool our kids. The California constitution guarantees the right to a free and appropriate public education, which this bill would deny to an entire group of people.
Denying right to public education? No religious exemption? Unconstitutional? You betcha.
And yet, it keeps passing through the legislature, with the authors straight up lying at every opportunity. What's saving my sanity at the moment is that our movement for medical freedom and parental choice is growing. People all across the state are now much more aware and are starting to question.
I'm part of a group that will be holding a mass rally tomorrow at Senator Wieckowski's office in Fremont. He's the senator who said last week that the state has ultimate parental power and thinks this bill isn't going far enough. We'll all be wearing red and carrying signs. The kids will have loud musical instruments. We are angry, we are growing, and we are not going away.
I made my own sign tonight, while Louis watched and shook his head. On one side it says "SB277" in a big circle with a line drawn through it. On the other side, it says, "The personal is political," which I'm borrowing from my college feminist days. I know Louis supports me, but I couldn't but feel very Mary Poppins "votes for women!"-like tonight. lol
Oh well. I have to feel like I'm doing something. Watch for us on the news tomorrow!
No comments:
Post a Comment