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State representatives Dan-Frankel of D-Squirrel Hill and Bridget Kosierowksi of D-Lackawanna announced legislation on Tuesday to increase the vaccination rate for Pennsylvania's children.
The bill would require parents who request non-medical exemptions for their children to consult a doctor each year to learn about the risks of not being vaccinated. This would also require Pennsylvania schools to publish online the number of vaccinated and unvaccinated students.
In Pennsylvania, if a parent wishes to exempt a child from vaccination, he is only required to sign a waiver recognizing a philosophical or religious objection.
Frankel said his legislation would ensure that accurate information reaches the public.
"There is a huge amount of inaccurate information on the Internet that plays on people's fears and makes them question their trust in traditional health care," said Frankel.
"That's what's happening with this vaccination problem. People are choosing not to vaccinate their children because of this misinformation and putting many families and their children at risk. "
In 2018, researchers at Baylor University published a study showing that Pennsylvania is one of a dozen states that have seen an increase in the number of parents choosing not to vaccinate their children against measles and other infectious diseases.
In May, the first official outbreak of measles in Pennsylvania for a decade was registered, including five cases in Allegheny County.
For Kosierowski, the problem is personal. Jake, his son, was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 4 years.
"Because of the treatment and chemotherapy that compromised her immune system, it became obvious to me, as a mother, to have brought her to places such as school, recess, Park, he was more susceptible to diseases if someone had not been vaccinated against measles, whooping cough or chicken pox, "Kosierowski said.
She says the legislation is designed to help parents make informed choices, allowing them to see how many children in a particular school are not vaccinated.
"It's not a name; We take into account HIPPA and the dignity and privacy of families and their choices. However, as a parent of a child like mine, I find that in this school there are for example 50 children who are not currently vaccinated against preventable diseases. "
It's no coincidence that Frankel and Kosierowski chose to make this announcement at KidsPlus Pediatrics in Greenfield, an organization that claims to have been the target of a global anti-vaccine attack.
"Our strongest sense as a parent is to do something that could harm our child. And so, they play on that fear, the people who publish this misinformation, and then the parents really wonder what to do, "said Dr. Todd Wolynn, CEO of KidsPlus Pediatrics.
"We have families who fear vaccines because of deliberate misinformation. They make very bad choices that allow their children to become infected or that the infection can lead to cancer or death. Wolynn said.
Frankel said that he knew his bill was facing a tough battle.
"My conversations with the Republican Chair of the Health Committee (State Representative, Kathy Rapp) show that she has agreed to hold a committee hearing on this issue," Frankel said. .
Frankel stated that Rapp had agreed to include in this hearing a law promoted by Representative Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, prohibiting pediatric practices from denying access to children who did not benefit from the cycle complete vaccination.
"The next step for these bills will be determined by the committee's management and the committee members when they return to the fall," said Mike Straub, spokesman for the House caucus.
Neither Rapp nor Metcalfe responded to requests for comment.
Paul Guggenheimer is an editor of Tribune-Review. You can contact Paul at 724-226-7706 or [email protected].
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