A state assemblyman has introduced a bill to toughen New York's vaccination law by eliminating religious exemptions for parents seeking to enroll their children in school, setting up a debate within his own party over whether the government should challenge the sincerity of a religious conviction.
Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, a Democrat from the Bronx, said he doesn't believe the vast majority of parents taking advantage of religious exemptions are truly devout.
Instead, he said, "they have bought into the garbage that these vaccinations can cause autism. That's a lot of crap."
Dinowitz said his support of the bill, which is also sponsored by Brad Hoylman, a Senate Democrat, is both a consequence of him recently becoming a grandparent (his daughter-in-law gave birth to twins earlier this year) worried about his grandchildren's safety, and a reaction to the measles outbreak that infected more than 100 people in 17 states, Canada and Mexico last winter.
The outbreak led to California changing its vaccination laws, eliminating both philosophical and religious exemptions.
Advocates for stricter vaccination laws argue parents who don't vaccinate put other children at risk, including those with weak immune systems and infants not yet old enough to receive the vaccine.
Bill would end religious exemption for vaccines - AKA Big Pharma muppets at work :(
Reply With Quote