California Vaccine Mandate Bill - Research Paper Example

California Vaccine Man Bill Introduction to the Problem There are legislations in all s of the country that require that children are vaccinated before they enter school (NCSL, 2015). However, there are varying exemptions across the states though immunization laws give students exemptions on basis of medical matters. Approximately all states give religious exemptions to those with religious perspectives against such measures. Additionally, twenty states permit philosophical exemptions for persons that object immunization programs based on moral, personal and other beliefs. However, states of California and Vermont passed legislations that will remove the philosophical exemptions with effect from July 2016. In this work, there is an analysis of the Philosophical Belief Bill in California. Description of the Proposed Legislation Various laws shield minority groups rights across the nation. Initially, the philosophical exemption law protected some groups of Americans against mandatory vaccination based on their religious and philosophical perspectives of them. It means that while it is almost necessary that children are vaccinated before they enter school, some children were exempted. However, the California vaccine mandate bill will eliminate the privilege starting 2016 (McGreevy, 2015). Therefore, the implication of the new bill is that families with negative religious beliefs will no longer be exempted. The new bill demands that a greater number of Californian children is vaccinated before they enter schools. According to the LA Times (April 22, 2015), the Senate passed the legislation on Wednesday 28, 2015 and will become a law beginning 2016 (McGreevy, 2015). The bill also provides for parents that have negative perception of vaccines to home school their children as a way of protecting their interests. Analysis of the Proposed Legislation and Religious Minorities There is a question of how suitable the proposed legislation is towards safeguarding of the rights of religious minorities in the state. While there is an acknowledgement of the rights of minority groups in the state, the new legislation will undermine such a privilege. The rationale for the deduction is that as some parents already complained, the number of children in schools will go lower. The reasoning is simple because parents with such beliefs will opt to keep their children away from schools as a way of protecting their interests. Some may argue that the legislation provides for parents with such opinions to home school their children. However, on much thought, there will be a discovery that the legislation will produce negative effect on the religious minorities. If children with minority religious interests must get education, then their parents have to meet increased costs. The increased costs will arise from the fact that they will have to hire private instructors. Another disadvantage is the fact that home schooling will affect social development of affected children because of reduced interaction with the rest. Discussion with Senator on the Appropriateness of the Legislation This section outlines a discussion with the makers of the legislation to determine its viability. The section outlines the health status of school-going children, access to care, health disparities, and the cost of care. Health Status There was a need to know from Senator Ben Allen why the state had decided for the move. The response was the presence of a number of communicable diseases that affect children of the school-going age. The problem worsens with the fact that communicable diseases spread faster in congested areas such as schools. If the latter happens, there will be more children put at risk of contracting contagious diseases, some of which may prove stubborn to treat. Vaccines stand out as the most effective ways of giving children protection from potentially chronic contagious diseases as well as curbing their spread. There are still cases of outbreaks of diseases initially considered controlled such as measles and whooping cough. One such instance occurred at the California amusement park last winter and affected close to 180 people (Keyes, 2015). Notably, most of the affected persons were those that were unvaccinated. Pertussis outbreaks have a long record of affecting schools. For instance, there were 28,000 reported cases of the highly infectious disease in 2014 alone, which occurred in the school-aged children (Keyes, 2015). The flu season succeeds the new school-year period. Such a fact means that timely vaccines at the time of entry to school serve the purpose of fighting such outbreaks. The problem hospitalizes more than 20,000 children every year, which is why there should be stringent measures to curb their spread. The senator noted that the bill would not reach all Californians, but would provide more safety against preventable infections. Therefore, even children from the minority groups have equal chances of infection (Keyes, 2015). The senator added that the allowance given by the legislation would still allow minority parents to exercise their right. Access to Care, Health Disparities, and the Cost of Care There was a need to understand why despite the ever-growing concern and improvements in healthcare, there were still parities in healthcare quality and accessibility. Notably, the cost of Medicare is far much too expensive for some minority groups and the poor. Another fact is there are still reported incidences of discrimination in the quality of Medicare offered to people on basis of the religious or racial backgrounds. There is evidence that about 33% of the population identified itself to minority groups in 2000 and by 2050 projections indicate they will be more than half of the population. Therefore, if the trend proves right, the country will be in danger of collapsing its Medicare. The most affected groups are Hispanics, Asians and Blacks (USDH, 2015). In his response, Senator Ben Allen noted the fact that while the highlighted issue was a compromise to the country’s Medicare system, there was a need to check it. He pointed at the fact that the 2010 NHDR and 2010 NHDR remind us of the necessity to enhance progress to realize higher quality and accessibility to healthcare. He said that there was a need for the state to include all people in the healthcare plans, which entails a number of issues. First, the senator noted the need to provide high healthcare quality and increase its accessibility to minority groups (USDH, 2015). He also talked of reducing the disparities in the provision of healthcare through institution of laws that protect minority groups against discrimination. Another aspect was the fact that California required to improve its speed of response to curbing reported disparities. Lastly, he said that there was also a need to close the gap in the provision of preventive measures across all classes and races of Americans. In his justification for the removal of laws protecting religious minorities against mandatory vaccination, the senator said that it was in line with the highlighted factors. For instance, the cost of treating infectious diseases is far much more than the cost of prevention. Therefore, if there was talk about making healthcare affordable, it was to begin from that point. The second aspect was that the new bill would ensure that all Californians had equal access to vaccination, which is a way of eliminating minority disparities to Medicare. Conclusion Removal of the philosophical and religious exemption laws in California is unwelcome by minority religious groups. The rationale for their action is there belief of negativities of vaccination in line with their religious interests. However, the new law, the California vaccine mandate bill seeks to reduce the costs of treating contagious diseases and chances of their contraction by school-going children. While it may appear as an infringement of their rights, the new law allows parents with particular religious interests opposed to law to act otherwise. For instance, they can keep their children away from schools as a way of evading the vaccination and practice home schooling. However, the move is disadvantageous because if children with minority religious interests must get education, then their parents have to meet increased costs. The increased costs will arise from the fact that they will have to hire private instructors. Another disadvantage is the fact that home schooling will affect social development of affected children because of reduced interaction with the rest. The makers of the policy argue that the policy is the best balance between minority groups and the law. Recommendation Californians should embrace the new bill and see its enactment in July 2016 because of its benefits. First, it will provide more safety against preventable infections. Therefore, even children from the minority groups equal remain infected and should receive protection. Another factor is if there was talk about making healthcare affordable, it was to begin vaccination. The second aspect was that the new bill would ensure that all Californians have equal access to vaccination, which is a way of eliminating minority disparities to Medicare. The biggest advantage of the new bill is that it will eliminate the perception that healthcare givers are discriminative. It is a move not very welcome, but upon full enactment, it will make healthcare more affordable and reduce parities in giving of medical care. The new bill will also make healthcare more accessible to minority groups in the state and act as a motivator for federal acknowledgement. Senator Ben Allen’s Contact Information Capitol Office State Capitol, Room 2054 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 651-4026 Fax: (916) 651-4926 District Office 2512 Artesia Blvd., #320 Redondo Beach, CA 90278-3279 Phone: (310) 318-6994 Fax: (310) 318-6733 References Keyes, W. S. (2015). Children should be immunized before going to school. Retrieved 29 October 2015, from http://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/local/middlesex-county/2015/08/10/updating-childrens-immunizations/31278499/ McGreevy, P. (2015). Bill removing California vaccine exemptions approved by key Senate panel. latimes.com. Retrieved 29 October 2015, from http://www.latimes.com/local/political/la-me-pc-california-vaccine-mandate-bill-is-approved-by-key-senate-panel-20150421-story.html National conference of State Legislators (NCSL). (2015). States with Religious and Philosophical Exemptions from School Immunization Requirements. Retrieved 29 October 2015, from http://www.ncsl.org/research/health/school-immunization-exemption-state-laws.aspx US Department of Health (USDH). (2015). Disparities in Healthcare Quality among Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups | AHRQ Archive. Retrieved 29 October 2015, from http://archive.ahrq.gov/research/findings/nhqrdr/nhqrdr10/minority.html Read More