(Hartford, Conn. WTIC)-The state House today considers an amendment to the religious exemption for vaccines that would grand-father in the age currently proposed for seventh grade down through kindergarten. Passage calls for the bill to take effect in September 2022.
Democrats say they doing this with" their eyes wide-open." But they argue it's necessary to protect the public's health.
Republicans counter that students have a Constitutional right to an education and this measure prevents that. They also wonder how these student will be educated.
Both Democrats and Republicans agree that a lawsuit is likley to be filed if the amendment passes.
Both parties also disagree on the number of students affected by the religious exemption. Public Health Committee Chair Jonathan Steinberg, a Democrat, puts it at less than one thousand. Republicans argue the number is more than 76-hundred.
