Supervisors Support State Bill on Immunizations

Following a public discussion that included testimony from 7-year-old Rhett Krawitt, (photo above) a leukemia survivor, the Marin County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to send a letter of support to the authors of a California Senate bill that would eliminate all but medical exemptions to vaccination requirements for children.

The bill is expected to be heard April 8 in the Senate Committee on Health and the Senate Committee on Education.

The vote to support Senate Bill 277 came after about 90 minutes of hearing from residents, health experts, the Marin County Public Health Officer and Board members.

State law currently allows a parent or guardian to have a child exempted from required immunizations. SB 277 would eliminate personal belief exemptions, permit only medical exemptions.

Currently, Marin County’s opt-out rate is 6.5 percent.

“Vaccines are not only safe and effective, but are critical in protecting our community from communicable diseases,” said Dr. Matthew Willis, Marin County Public Health Officer. “If unvaccinated children become ill they can infect friends, neighbors and classmates. This bill would support the health of all of our community, especially young infants and those who can’t vaccinate for medical reasons.”

Marin recorded two cases of measles in January; it logged 264 cases of whooping cough in 2014 and 351 in 2010. Both are preventable through vaccination.

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