Legislators in California have offered a measure that would mandate that children be vaccinated before they can enter school.
If passed, waivers over religious or personal beliefs would no longer be allowed if parents want to send their kids to public school in the Golden State, only if there are health reasons why their children can't be vaccinated,
The Wall Street Journal reported.
This comes after an
outbreak of measles earlier this year, which mostly affected California, but also hit Arizona, Nebraska, Oregon, Utah and Washington state.
The outbreak led many doctors, parents and government officials to call for
mandatory vaccinations.
However, those who oppose mandatory vaccinations claim that in some cases the vaccines can be more harmful than the diseases they aim to prevent.
"I stand here today before you to share my story so you can all see and hear what happens when vaccines go wrong," said Karen Kain, the mother of a girl who allegedly died from vaccine injuries. "Who gets to make the choice now of whose babies are more important? Because there is risk, there must be choice."
California's Senate Health Committee held an emotionally-charged hearing over the bill, but SB277 still passed in the committee Wednesday by a 6-2 vote.
Mississippi and West Virginia already have mandatory vaccination laws on the books. Similar measures have been presented in a total of 10 states.
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