As you all know, in a one-day legal Blitzkrieg, and without a public hearing, both houses of the New York Legislature passed, and the Governor signed a bill removing the religious exemption to mandatory school vaccination.

A2371 is now law in New York.
Here is the law: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2019/a2371/amendment/a

The new law has an immediate effect on families who had a religious exemption, until this law passed. The law states that school officials cannot allow unvaccinated children to “attend” school for more than 14 days (extended to 30 days and beyond in some circumstances) without proof of immunization in accordance with the state mandated vaccine schedule (or a medical exemption).

Here are the vaccines per the schedule, as set forth in A 2371:

“POLIOMYELITIS, MUMPS, MEASLES, DIPHTHERIA, RUBELLA, VARICELLA, HEPATITIS B, PERTUSSIS, TETANUS, AND, WHERE APPLICABLE, HAEMOPHILUS INFLUENZAE TYPE B (HIB), MENINGOCOCCAL DISEASE, AND PNEUMOCOCCAL DISEASE.”

What you have to do if you had a religious exemption?

Barring a temporary restraining order enjoining school officials from enforcing the law (and I will discuss that in a bit), basically the religiously exempt need to get the initial shots of the vaccines in the schedule, supposedly in accordance with the vaccine schedule.

Here is the actual language:

“OR WHERE THE PARENT, GUARDIAN, OR ANY OTHER PERSON IN PARENTAL RELATIONSHIP TO SUCH CHILD CAN DEMONSTRATE THAT A CHILD HAS RECEIVED AT LEAST THE FIRST DOSE IN EACH IMMUNIZATION SERIES REQUIRED BY THIS SECTION AND HAS AGE APPROPRIATE APPOINTMENTS SCHEDULED TO COMPLETE THE IMMUNIZATION SERIES ACCORDING TO THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON IMMUNIZATION PRACTICES RECOMMENDED IMMUNIZATION SCHEDULES FOR PERSONS AGED 0 THROUGH 18 YEARS.”

I was not at the hearing, and I haven’t heard about the testimony concerning the scientific evidence demonstrating the safety of administering all these vaccines in a 14- or 30-day period… Oh, I forgot, there was no hearing.

I understand that the scientific community stands behind the CDC AAP, the AAFP and the other acronym endorsers of the regular vaccine schedule. But we’re not talking about that accepted schedule here.

This is a highly abbreviated schedule created by legislative fiat. I am skeptical that there was any hard-scientific evidence presented proving that all the initial doses of all required vaccines can be safely administered to a child over a 14- or 30-day period.

Why am I skeptical?

BECAUSE THE NEW YORK LEGISLATIVE VACCINE SCHEDULE IS INCONSISTENT WITH THE VACCINE SCHEDULE ENDORSED BY ALL OF THE LETTERED PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS WHICH ESTABLISHED OR ENDORSES THE EXISTING VACCINE SCHEDULE. THESE ORGANIZATIONS ATTACK ANY ALTERNATIVE VACCINE SCHEDULE, EXCEPT APPARENTLY THE NEW YORK LEGISLATIVE VACCINE SCHEDULE FOR THE PREVIOUSLY RELIGIOUSLY EXEMPT.

You have to assume that the folks who created the current vaccine schedule thought they had good reasons for not administering all the vaccines (or initial shots of each) within 30 days. Whatever evidence they used to make those decisions (if there was any) is evidence of the danger or potential harm which A 2371 could cause to the heretofore religiously exempt.

Therefore, A2371 is presumptively unsafe for children, pending proof by the State that the New York Legislative Vaccine Schedule requiring 30-day initial compliance is as safe, as the vaccine schedule endorsed by all pediatric medical professional organizations.(The latter being a big assumption admittedly)

Therefore, Your Honor, we seek an immediate TRO and pending a full evidentiary preliminary injunction hearing wherein the State of New York be required to prove that mandating that a child receive all listed vaccines within 30 days is medical safe and does not create an undue risk of harm. Absent such a showing, the Court should strike down the law for the constitutional (equal protection) and other grounds set forth in the accompanying memorandum of law.

Or so I see the best chance you folks have in stopping A 2371.

Rick Jaffe, Esq.
rickjaffeesquire@gmail.com