A bill that would expand vaccine exemptions for public K-12 schools is headed to the Senate floor.
The bill (SB 1756) would create a new “conscience” category for parents to opt their children out of immunizations typically required for students to attend public K-12 schools.
It passed through the Senate Rules Committee Tuesday despite opposition from two Republicans.
Sen. Clay Yarborough, R-Jacksonville, the bill’s sponsor, said he wants to give more opportunities for non-religious individuals to object to vaccinations and have the opportunity to exempt their children as well.
“The legislation is about the values we hold in high regard,” Yarborough said. “Fundamentally, it’s about parents being able to make the best decisions for their children.”
The bill has been a flashpoint between parents’ rights advocates and health care practitioners, who warn the expansion of vaccine exemptions will lead to widespread illness from preventable diseases.
It’s also caused a rift among Senate Republicans. Sen. Gayle Harrell, R-Stuart, said she would not vote for the bill, especially as the state is currently battling a measles outbreak.
Florida has the third-most measles cases in the country with more than 100 cases.
Sen, Colleen Burton, R-Lakeland, also voted no, arguing the bill doesn’t respect the choices of all parents, including those who want to send their children to a school that requires vaccines.
Burton filed an amendment that would have allowed private schools to implement their own vaccine requirements and refuse admission to students based on their vaccination status but it was voted down.
The bill also requires health care practitioners who administer vaccines to offer parents an alternative vaccine schedule and provide the most recently issued Vaccine Information Statement published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for each vaccine administered. A parent would also have to sign a document acknowledging receipt of the information.
As for parents who choose not to vaccinate, the downloadable exemption form would include materials “relating to the role of immunizations in communicable disease prevention,” and the webpage will link to the CDC’s vaccine information statement.
Yarborough assured senators that the information provided to families, regardless of vaccination choice, would be the same.
Another provision of the bill allows pharmacists to provide ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug often prescribed for animals, over-the-counter for adults without a prescription.
The drug is seen by some as helpful against COVID-19, but medical professionals have warned against its use to combat the virus. Pharmacists would be given immunity from liability for any ill effects caused by ivermectin under the bill.
Sen. Lori Berman, D-Boynton Beach, questioned why the ivermectin was included in the bill.
“There is no reason we in the state of Florida should be treating it any differently than the federal government treats it now,” said Sen. Lori Berman, D-Boynton Beach.
The House version of the bill (HB 917), which would require doctors to accept all patients regardless of vaccination status, hasn’t been considered in that chamber this year. That measure has been pushed by First Lady Casey DeSantis and Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo.
