3 March 2019 — 0812 mst

Only medical exemptions to
required vaccinations should be allowed

Three bills (HB-564, HB-574, HB-575) that would have aided and abetted Montanans trying to avoid required vaccinations were voted down by wide margins in the MT House Thursday. Another bill, SB-23, making avoiding vaccinations easier, passed the MT Senate and is awaiting a hearing in the MT House’s judiciary committee. Should the legislature approve SB-23, one hopes that Gov. Bullock will veto it.

Bills to weaken vaccination policy are not unique to Montana’s legislature. Indeed, they’re proliferating across the nation like dandelions in a horse pasture despite serious outbreaks of measles, a nasty and highly contagious disease for which a safe, effective, vaccine exists.

Defeating these bills is necessary, but not sufficient, to protect and strengthen public health systems. In Montana, we need to:

• Allow only medical exemptions to required vaccinations.


• Require that all medical personnel and employees of hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, pharmacies, and health departments, receive the influenza vaccination at a minimum, with criminal penalties (fines and mandatory time in the slammer) for violations.

Vaccination skeptics and resisters are threats to public health. It’s time to stop proposing and passing legislation that rewards their foolish and dangerous behavior.