NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- A Manhattan judge reportedly stopped a Long Island dad’s visitation with his young daughter unless he gets vaccinated or gets tested for COVID-19 on a weekly basis.
The ruling required either getting the shot or getting a weekly PCR test along with a biweekly antigen test within a day of a visit with his 3-year-old daughter, which currently happens every other weekend, the New York Post reported.
“The dangers of voluntarily remaining unvaccinated during access with a child while the COVID-19 virus remains a threat to children’s health and safety cannot be understated,” the decision, handed down last week, reportedly said.
Sources told The Post that the father previously tested positive for COVID-19, and his lawyer said his immunity “may be as protective as vaccination.”
The father’s lawyer said his client “isn’t a conspiracy theorist” and has concerns about the vaccine after an alleged bad reaction to a flu shot.
The names of those involved were withheld.
The decision was met with approval by the lawyer for the child's mother.
“It’s an incredibly important one that highlights the extraordinary times we are living in and reinforces that a child’s best interests are paramount,” attorney Evan Schein said to The Post.
But on the other side of the case, the dad’s attorney reportedly said it set a “dangerous and unjustified precedent.”
According to court records, the couple separated in 2019, and heated hearings have followed since.
The ruling denoted the father’s visits are being supervised due to a “history of substance abuse and treated mental health issues.”